Modern scholarship has largely acknowledged the authenticity of the reference in Book 20, Chapter 9, 1 of the Antiquities to "the brother of Jesus, who was called Christ, whose name was James"[12] and considers it as having the highest level of authenticity among the references of Josephus to Christianity.[13][1][2][14][15][16] Almost all modern scholars consider the reference in Book 18, Chapter 5, 2 of the Antiquities to the imprisonment and death of John the Baptist also to be authentic and not a Christian interpolation.[17][18][19] The references found in Antiquities have no parallel texts in the other work by Josephus such as The Jewish War, written 20 years earlier, but some scholars have provided explanations for their absence.[20] A number of variations exist between the statements by Josephus regarding the deaths of James and John the Baptist and the New Testament accounts.[17][21] Scholars generally view these variations as indications that the Josephus passages are not interpolations, for a Christian interpolator would have made them correspond to the New Testament accounts, not differ from them.[17][22][21]

And now Caesar, upon hearing the death of Festus, sent Albinus into Judea, as procurator. But the king deprived Joseph of the high priesthood, and bestowed the succession to that dignity on the son of Ananus, who was also himself called Ananus. Now the report goes that this eldest Ananus proved a most fortunate man; for he had five sons who had all performed the office of a high priest to God, and who had himself enjoyed that dignity a long time formerly, which had never happened to any other of our high priests. But this younger Ananus, who, as we have told you already, took the high priesthood, was a bold man in his temper, and very insolent; he was also of the sect of the Sadducees, who are very rigid in judging offenders, above all the rest of the Jews, as we have already observed; when, therefore, Ananus was of this disposition, he thought he had now a proper opportunity. Festus was now dead, and Albinus was but upon the road; so he assembled the sanhedrin of judges, and brought before them the brother of Jesus, who was called Christ, whose name was James, and some others; and when he had formed an accusation against them as breakers of the law, he delivered them to be stoned: but as for those who seemed the most equitable of the citizens, and such as were the most uneasy at the breach of the laws, they disliked what was done; they also sent to the king, desiring him to send to Ananus that he should act so no more, for that what he had already done was not to be justified; nay, some of them went also to meet Albinus, as he was upon his journey from Alexandria, and informed him that it was not lawful for Ananus to assemble a sanhedrin without his consent. Whereupon Albinus complied with what they said, and wrote in anger to Ananus, and threatened that he would bring him to punishment for what he had done; on which king Agrippa took the high priesthood from him, when he had ruled but three months, and made Jesus, the son of Damneus, high priest.

The context of the passage is the period following the death of Porcius Festus, and the journey to Alexandria by Lucceius Albinus, the new RomanProcurator of Judea, who held that position from 62 AD to 64 AD.[25] Because Albinus' journey to Alexandria had to have concluded no later than the summer of 62 AD, the date of James' death can be assigned with some certainty to around that year.[25][28][24] The 2nd century chronicler Hegesippus also left an account of the death of James, and while the details he provides diverge from those of Josephus, the two accounts share similar elements.[29][14][28]

Modern scholarship has almost universally acknowledged the authenticity of the reference to "the brother of Jesus, who was called Christ, whose name was James"[12] (τὸν ἀδελφὸν Ἰησοῦ τοῦ λεγομένου Χριστοῦ, Ἰάκωβος ὄνομα αὐτῷ) and has rejected its being the result of later Christian interpolation.[13][30][1][2][16] Moreover, in comparison with Hegesippus' account of James' death, most scholars consider Josephus' to be the more historically reliable.[29] However, a few scholars question the authenticity of the reference, based on various arguments, but primarily based on the observation that various details in The Jewish War differ from it.[31][32][citation not found]

Now some of the Jews thought that the destruction of Herod's army came from God, and that very justly, as a punishment of what he did against John, that was called the Baptist: for Herod slew him, who was a good man... Herod, who feared lest the great influence John had over the people might put it into his power and inclination to raise a rebellion... Accordingly he was sent a prisoner, out of Herod's suspicious temper, to Macherus, the castle I before mentioned, and was there put to death.[33]

Almost all modern scholars consider this passage to be authentic in its entirety, although a small number of authors have questioned it.[17][36][37] Because the death of John also appears prominently in the Christian gospels, this passage is considered an important connection between the events Josephus recorded, the chronology of the gospels and the dates for the ministry of Jesus.[17] A few scholars have questioned the passage, contending that the absence of Christian tampering or interpolation does not itself prove authenticity.[38] While this passage is the only reference to John the Baptist outside the New Testament, it is widely seen by most scholars as confirming the historicity of the baptisms that John performed.[17][39][40][41] According to Marsh, any contrast between Josephus and the Gospel's accounts of John would be because the former lacked interest in the messianic element of John's mission.[42]

While both the gospels and Josephus refer to Herod Antipas killing John the Baptist, they differ on the details and the motive. The gospels present this as a consequence of the marriage of Herod Antipas and Herodias in defiance of Jewish law (as in Matthew 14:4, Mark 6:18); Josephus refers to it as a pre-emptive measure by Herod to quell a possible uprising.[43][44][45][19] Danielou contends that Josephus missed the religious meaning while recording only the political aspect of the conflict between Herod and John, which led to the latter's death.[42]

While Josephus identifies the location of the imprisonment of John as Machaerus, southeast of the mouth of the Jordan river, the gospels mention no location for the place where John was imprisoned.[46] According to other historical accounts Machaerus was rebuilt by Herod the Great around 30 BC and then passed to Herod Antipas.[46][47][48] The 36 AD date of the conflict with Aretas IV (mentioned by Josephus) is consistent with the approximate date of the marriage of Herod Antipas and Herodias estimated by other historical methods.[47][49][18]

Γίνεται δὲ κατὰ τοῦτον τὸν χρόνον Ἰησοῦς σοφὸς ἀνήρ, εἴγε ἄνδρα αὐτὸν λέγειν χρή: ἦν γὰρ παραδόξων ἔργων ποιητής, διδάσκαλος ἀνθρώπων τῶν ἡδονῇ τἀληθῆ δεχομένων, καὶ πολλοὺς μὲν Ἰουδαίους, πολλοὺς δὲ καὶ τοῦ Ἑλληνικοῦ ἐπηγάγετο: ὁ χριστὸς οὗτος ἦν. καὶ αὐτὸν ἐνδείξει τῶν πρώτων ἀνδρῶν παρ᾽ ἡμῖν σταυρῷ ἐπιτετιμηκότος Πιλάτου οὐκ ἐπαύσαντο οἱ τὸ πρῶτον ἀγαπήσαντες: ἐφάνη γὰρ αὐτοῖς τρίτην ἔχων ἡμέραν πάλιν ζῶν τῶν θείων προφητῶν ταῦτά τε καὶ ἄλλα μυρία περὶ αὐτοῦ θαυμάσια εἰρηκότων. εἰς ἔτι τε νῦν τῶν Χριστιανῶν ἀπὸ τοῦδε ὠνομασμένον οὐκ ἐπέλιπε τὸ φῦλον.[50][About this time there lived Jesus, a wise man, if indeed one ought to call him a man. For he was one who performed surprising deeds and was a teacher of such people as accept the truth gladly. He won over many Jews and many of the Greeks. He was the Christ. And when, upon the accusation of the principal men among us, Pilate had condemned him to a cross, those who had first come to love him did not cease. He appeared to them spending a third day restored to life, for the prophets of God had foretold these things and a thousand other marvels about him. And the tribe of the Christians, so called after him, has still to this day not disappeared.]

The Testimonium Flavianum (meaning the testimony of Flavius Josephus) is a passage found in Book 18, Chapter 3, 3 (or see Greek text) of the Antiquities which describes the condemnation and crucifixion of Jesus at the hands of the Roman authorities.[52][5] The Testimonium is likely the most discussed passage in Josephus.[1]

The earliest secure reference to this passage is found in the writings of the fourth-century Christian apologist and historian Eusebius, who used Josephus' works extensively as a source for his own Historia Ecclesiastica. Writing no later than 324,[53] Eusebius quotes the passage[54] in essentially the same form as that preserved in extant manuscripts. It has therefore been suggested that part or all of the passage may have been Eusebius' own invention, in order to provide an outside Jewish authority for the life of Christ.[55][56] Some argue that the wording in the Testimonium differs from Josephus' usual writing style and that as a Jew, he would not have used a word like krystos (χριστὸς), at Josephus' time being the Greek term for "Messiah".[57] Also see Arguments for Authenticity.

Of the three passages found in Josephus' Antiquities, this passage, if authentic, would offer the most direct support for the crucifixion of Jesus. The general scholarly view is that while the Testimonium Flavianum is most likely not authentic in its entirety, it originally consisted of an authentic nucleus with a reference to the execution of Jesus by Pilate which was then subject to interpolation.[5][6][7][8][10]James Dunn states that there is "broad consensus" among scholars regarding the nature of an authentic reference to Jesus in the Testimonium and what the passage would look like without the interpolations.[9] Among other things, the authenticity of this passage would help make sense of the later reference in Josephus' Antiquities of the JewsBook 20, Chapter 9, 1 where Josephus refers to the stoning of "James the brother of Jesus". Feldman renders "τοῦ λεγομένου Χριστοῦ" not as "who was called Christ" but as "the aforementioned Christ" and sees this as confirmation that he had mentioned Jesus the Christ earlier, namely in the Testimonium.[1][2][58]

Josephus wrote all of his surviving works after his establishment in Rome (c. AD 71) under the patronage of the Flavian Emperor Vespasian. As is common with ancient texts, however, there are no extant (surviving) manuscripts of Josephus' works that can be dated before the 11th century, and the oldest of these are all Greek minuscules, copied by Christian monks.[59] Jews are not known to have preserved the writings of Josephus perhaps because he was considered a traitor,[60] and/or because his works circulated in Greek, the use of which declined among Jews shortly after Josephus' era. However an adapted Hebrew version was made in the Middle Ages and continues to be used to this day.

There are about 120 extant Greek manuscripts of Josephus, of which 33 predate the 14th century, with two thirds from the Comnenoi period.[61] The earliest surviving Greek manuscript that contains the Testimonium is the 11th century Ambrosianus 370 (F 128), preserved in the Biblioteca Ambrosiana in Milan, which includes almost all of the second half of the Antiquities. [62] There are about 170 extant Latin translations of Josephus, some of which go back to the sixth century, and according to Louis Feldman have proven very useful in reconstructing the Josephus texts through comparisons with the Greek manuscripts, reconfirming proper names and filling in gaps.[63]

There is considerable evidence, however, that attests to the existence of the references to Jesus in Josephus well before then, including a number of ad hoc copies of Josephus' work preserved in quotation from the works of Christian writers. The earliest known such reference to Josephus' work is found in the writings of the third century patristic author Origen, who refers to Josephus' record of "the death of James the Just, who was a brother of Jesus (called Christ)" in Book I, Chapter XLVII of Against Celsus, including Origen's observations that Josephus did not recognize Jesus as "the Christ" when mentioning him in the "Antiquities of the Jews". Reference to the Testimonium Flavianum is found in Eusebius of Caesarea, writing in the first decades of the fourth century.[53] Both Origen and Eusebius had access to the Greek versions of Josephus' texts. The works of Josephus were translated into Latin during the fourth century (possibly by Rufinus), and, in the same century, the Jewish War was "partially rewritten as an anti-Jewish treatise, known today as Pseudo-Hegesippus, but [which] was considered for over a millennium and a half by many Christians as the ipsissima verba of Josephus to his own people." [64]

One of the reasons the works of Josephus were copied and maintained by Christians was that his writings provided a good deal of information about a number of figures mentioned in the New Testament, and the background to events such as the death of James during a gap in Roman governing authority.[13] Because manuscript transmission was done by hand-copying, typically by monastic scribes, almost all ancient texts have been subject to both accidental and deliberate alterations, emendations (called interpolation) or elisions. Both the lack of any original corroborating manuscript source outside the Christian tradition as well as the practice of Christian interpolation has led to the scholarly debate regarding the authenticity of Josephus' references to Jesus in his work. Although there is no doubt that most (but not all[65]) of the later copies of the Antiquities contained references to Jesus and John the Baptist, it cannot be definitively shown that these were original to Josephus writings. Much of the scholarly work concerning the references to Jesus in Josephus has concentrated on close textual analysis of the Josephan corpus to determine the degree to which the language, as preserved in both early Christian quotations and the later transmissions, should be considered authentic. However, based on the general expectation of what Josephus would have written on Jesus and the actual statements made by Origen and Jerome, the version used by Michael the Syrian and Agapius (see below, Arabic and Syriac Josephus), the neutral reconstruction of the text has a reasonable probability of being what Josephus actually wrote as they would have had access to earlier copies of the Testimonium.[66]

The three references found in Book 18 and Book 20 of the Antiquities do not appear in any other versions of Josephus' The Jewish War except for a Slavonic version of the Testimonium Flavianum (at times called Testimonium Slavonium) which surfaced in the west at the beginning of the 20th century, after its discovery in Russia at the end of the 19th century.[67][68]

Although originally hailed as authentic (notably by Robert Eisler), it is now almost universally acknowledged by scholars to have been the product of an 11th-century creation as part of a larger ideological struggle against the Khazars.[69] As a result, it has little place in the ongoing debate over the authenticity and nature of the references to Jesus in the Antiquities.[69]Craig A. Evans states that although some scholars had in the past supported the Slavonic Josephus, "to my knowledge no one today believes that they contain anything of value for Jesus research".[70]

In 1971, a 10th-century Arabic version of the Testimonium due to Agapius of Hierapolis was brought to light by Shlomo Pines who also discovered a 12th-century Syriac version of Josephus by Michael the Syrian.[71][4][72] These additional manuscript sources of the Testimonium have furnished additional ways to evaluate Josephus' mention of Jesus in the Antiquities, principally through a close textual comparison between the Arabic, Syriac and Greek versions to the Testimonium.[6][73]

There are subtle yet key differences between the Greek manuscripts and these texts. For instance, the Arabic version does not blame the Jews for the death of Jesus. The key phrase "at the suggestion of the principal men among us" reads instead "Pilate condemned him to be crucified".[74][6] Instead of "he was Christ", the Syriac version has the phrase "he was believed to be Christ".[58] Drawing on these textual variations, scholars have suggested that these versions of the Testimonium more closely reflect what a non-Christian Jew might have written.[4]

In the 3rd century, Origen of Alexandria was the first ancient writer to have a comprehensive reference to Josephus, although some other authors had made smaller, general references to Josephus before then, e.g. Justin Martyr and Irenaeus in the second century, followed by Clement.[75][76] According to Wataru Mizugaki, Origen explicitly mentions the name of Josephus 11 times, never mentioning the Testimonium, both in Greek and Latin. However, despite the fact that most of Origen's works only survive in Latin translations, 10 out of the 11 references are in the original Greek.[75] According to Lester L. Grabbe, Origen noted in two works ("Commentary on Matthew" 10.17 and "Contra Celsum" 1.47) that Josephus had mentioned Jesus without recognizing him as the messiah. These were complaints on Origen's part and this provided an early independent support of the partial Tesimonium in the neutral form.[66]

The context for Origen's references is his defense of Christianity.[75] In Contra Celsum (Book I, Chapter XLVII) as Origen defends the Christian practice of baptism, he recounts Josephus' reference to the baptisms performed by John the Baptist for the sake of purification.[75] Here Origen also says, "For in the 18th book of his Antiquities[1] of the Jews, Josephus bears witness to John as having been a Baptist, and as promising purification to those who underwent the rite. Now this writer, although not believing in Jesus as the Christ".[66] In Book II, Chapter XIII, Origen mentions Josephus' reference to the death of James the brother of Jesus and again in his Commentary on Matthew (Book X, Chapter 17) Origen refers to Josephus' Antiquities of the Jews by name and that Josephus had stated that the death of James had brought a wrath upon those who had killed him [75][77] and that Jesus was not seen by Josephus as being the Christ.[66]

In Book II, Chapter 23.20 of his Church History, Eusebius describes the death of James according to Josephus. In that chapter, Eusebius first describes the background including Festus, and mentions Clement and Hegesippus. In item 20 of that chapter Eusebius then mentions Josephus' reference to the death of James and the sufferings that befell those who killed him. However, Eusebius does not acknowledge Origen as one of his sources for the reference to James in Josephus.[79]

There are some variations between the statements by Josephus regarding James the brother of Jesus and John the Baptist and the New Testament and other Christian accounts. Scholars generally view these variations as indications that the Josephus passages are not interpolations, for a Christian interpolator would have made them correspond to the Christian traditions.[17][22]

Josephus' account places the date of the death of James as AD 62.[80] This date is supported by Jerome's 'seventh year of the Emperor Nero', although Jerome may simply be drawing this from Josephus.[81] However, James' successor as leader of the Jerusalem church, Simeon, is not, in tradition, appointed till after the siege of Jerusalem in AD 70, and Eusebius' notice of Simeon implies a date for the death of James immediately before the siege, i.e. about AD 69.[21] The method of death of James is not mentioned in the New Testament.[82] However, the account of Josephus differs from that of later works by Hegesippus, Clement of Alexandria, and Origen, and Eusebius of Caesarea that it simply has James stoned while the others have other variations such as having James thrown from the top of the Temple, stoned, and finally beaten to death by a fuller [83] as well as his death occurring during the siege of Jerusalem in AD 69.

John Painter states that the relationship of the death of James to the siege is an important theologoumenon in the early church.[21] On the basis of the Gospel accounts it was concluded that the fate of the city was determined by the death there of Jesus.[21] To account for the 35 year difference, Painter states that the city was preserved temporarily by the presence within it of a 'just man' (see also Sodom); who was identified with James, as confirmed by Origen. Hence Painter states that the killing of James restarted the clock that led to the destruction of the city and that the traditional dating of 69 AD simply arose from an over-literal application of the theologoumenon, and is not to be regarded as founded on a historical source.[21] The difference between Josephus and the Christian accounts of the death of James is seen as an indication that the Josephus passage is not a Christian interpolation by scholars such as Eddy, Boyd, and Kostenberger.[83][84]Geza Vermes states that compared to the Christian accounts: "the sober picture of Josephus appears all the more believable".[85]G. A. Wells, on the other hand, has stated that in view of Origen's statements these variations from the Christian accounts may be signs of interpolation in the James passage.[86]

The marriage of Herod Antipas and Herodias is mentioned both in Josephus and in the gospels, and scholars consider Josephus as a key connection in establishing the approximate chronology of specific episodes related to John the Baptist.[17] However, although both the gospels and Josephus refer to Herod Antipas killing John the Baptist, they differ on the details and motives, e.g. whether this act was a consequence of the marriage of Herod Antipas and Herodias (as indicated in Matthew 14:4, Mark 6:18), or a pre-emptive measure by Herod which possibly took place before the marriage to quell a possible uprising based on the remarks of John, as Josephus suggests in Antiquities 18.5.2.[43][87][47]

Louis Feldman has stated that there is "no necessary contradiction between Josephus and the gospels as to the reason why John was put to death" in that the Christians chose to emphasize the moral charges while Josephus emphasized the political fears that John stirred in Herod.[88]

Josephus stated (Antiquities 18.5.2) that the AD 36 defeat of Herod Antipas in the conflicts with Aretas IV of Nabatea was widely considered by the Jews of the time as misfortune brought about by Herod's unjust execution of John the Baptist.[87][89][90] The approximate dates presented by Josephus are in concordance with other historical records, and most scholars view the variation between the motive presented by Josephus and the New Testament accounts is seen as an indication that the Josephus passage is not a Christian interpolation.[17]

A comparative argument made against the authenticity of the James passage by scholars such as Tessa Rajak is that the passage has a negative tone regarding the High Priest Ananus, presenting him as impulsive while in the Jewish Wars Josephus presents a positive view of Ananus and portrays him as prudent.[91][92]

A textual argument against the authenticity of the James passage is that the use of the term "Christos" there seems unusual for Josephus.[91] An argument based on the flow of the text in the document is that given that the mention of Jesus appears in the Antiquities before that of the John the Baptist a Christian interpolator may have inserted it to place Jesus in the text before John.[91] A further argument against the authenticity of the James passage is that it would have read well even without a reference to Jesus.[91] New Testament scholar Robert M. Price speculates that Josephus may have considered James a fraternal brother rather than a sibling.[93]

Some of the arguments for and against the authenticity of the James passage revolve around the similarities and differences between the accounts of Josephus, Origen, Eusebius and the Christian accounts. Although Josephus' account of the method of death of James differs from that of the Christian tradition, this is seen as an indication that the Josephus account is not a Christian interpolation.[22][94]

John Painter states that Origen expresses surprise that given that a Josephus who disbelieves in Jesus as Christ (Commentary on MatthewBook X, Chapter 17) should write respectfully of James, his brother.[95] However, according to Painter unlike the Testimonium this issue has not generated a great deal of controversy, although viewed as a potential reason for doubting authenticity.[95]

An issue that is subject to more debate is that in Commentary on Matthew (Book X, Chapter 17), Origen cites Josephus as stating the death of James had brought a wrath upon those who had killed him, and that his death was the cause of the destruction of Jerusalem.[75][77][96] At the end of Book II, Chapter XIII Origen disagrees with Josephus' placement of blame for the destruction of Jerusalem on the death of James, and states that it was due to the death of Jesus, not James.[95]

In Book II, Chapter 23.20 of his Church History, Eusebius mentions Josephus' reference to the death of James and the sufferings that befell those who killed him. In this reference Eusebius writes: “These things happened to the Jews to avenge James the Just, who was a brother of Jesus, that is called the Christ. For the Jews slew him, although he was a most just man.” However, this statement does not appear in the extant manuscripts of Josephus.[95] Moreover, in Book III, ch. 11 of his Church History Eusebius states that the conquest of Jerusalem immediately followed the martyrdom of James setting the martyrdom at c70 CE rather than the c62 CE given by Josephus.[97][98] Painter states that whether the Book II, Chapter 23.20 statement by Eusebius is an interpolation remains an open question.[95]

Eusebius does not acknowledge Origen as one of his sources for the reference to James in Josephus.[79] However, John Painter states that placing the blame for the siege of Jerusalem on the death of James is perhaps an early Christian invention that predates both Origen and Eusebius and that it likely existed in the traditions to which they were both exposed.[95] Painter states that it is likely that Eusebius may have obtained his explanation of the siege of Jerusalem from Origen.[79]

G. A. Wells has stated that the fact that Origen seems to have read something different about the death of James in Josephus than what there is now, suggests some tampering with the James passage seen by Origen.[86] Wells suggests that the interpolation seen by Origen may not have survived in the extant Josephus manuscripts, but that it opens the possibility that there may have been other interpolations in Josephus' writings.[86] Wells further states that differences between the Josephus account and those of Hegesippus and Clement of Alexandria may point to interpolations in the James passage.[86]

Richard Carrier argues that the words "the one called Christ" likely resulted from the accidental insertion of a marginal note added by some unknown reader.[99] Carrier proposes that the original text referred to a brother named James of the high priest Jesus ben Damneus mentioned in the same narrative. James (the brother of Jesus) is executed by Ananus. The Jews get angry at this. Complaints and demands are made. The King removes Ananus from being High Priest. Jesus ben Damneus is then made high priest.[99]

Scholars such as Claudia Setzer have noted the differences between the rationale for the death of John the Baptist presented by Josephus, and the theological variations (e.g. whether immersion in water can result in the forgiveness of sins, etc.) and the New Testament accounts.[100] However, these differences are usually seen as indications of the lack of tampering, given that an interpolator would have made the accounts similar.[101]

Claire Rothschild has stated that the absence of Christian interpolations in the Josephus passage on John the Baptist can not by itself be used as an argument for its authenticity, but is merely an indication of the lack of tampering.[102]

The Testimonium has been the subject of a great deal of research and debate among scholars, being one of the most discussed passages among all antiquities.[103] Louis Feldman has stated that in the period from 1937 to 1980 at least 87 articles had appeared on the topic, the overwhelming majority of which questioned the total or partial authenticity of the Testimonium.[104] While early scholars considered the Testimonium to be a total forgery, the majority of modern scholars consider it partially authentic, despite some clear Christian interpolations in the text.[105][106]

The arguments surrounding the authenticity of the Testimonium fall into two categories: internal arguments that rely on textual analysis and compare the passage with the rest of Josephus' work; and external arguments, that consider the wider cultural and historical context.[107] Some of the external arguments are "arguments from silence" that question the authenticity of the entire passage not for what it says, but due to lack of references to it among other ancient sources.[108]

The external analyses of the Testimonium have even used computer-based methods, e.g. the matching of the text of the Testimonium with the Gospel of Luke performed by Gary Goldberg in 1995.[109] Goldberg found some partial matches between the Testimonium and Luke 24:19–21, 26–27 stating "the Emmaus narrative more closely resembles the Testimonium in its phrase-by-phrase outline of content and order than any other known text of comparable age."[109] Goldberg's analyses suggested three possibilities, one that the matches were random, or that the Testimonium was a Christian interpolation based on Luke, and finally that both the Testimonium and Luke were based on the same sources.[109]

One of the key internal arguments against the total authenticity of the Testimonium is that the clear inclusion of Christian phraseology strongly indicates the presence of some interpolations.[110] For instance, the phrases "if it be lawful to call him a man" suggests that Jesus was more than human and is likely a Christian interpolation.[110] Some scholars have attempted to reconstruct the original Testimonium, but others contend that attempts to discriminate the passage into Josephan and non-Josephan elements are inherently circular.[111]

Andreas Köstenberger states that the fact that the 10th-century Arabic version of the Testimonium (discovered in the 1970s) lacks distinct Christian terminology while sharing the essential elements of the passage indicates that the Greek Testimonium has been subject to interpolation.[6]

Another example of the textual arguments against the Testimonium is that it uses the Greek term poietes to mean "doer" (as part of the phrase "doer of wonderful works") but elsewhere in his works, Josephus only uses the term poietes to mean "poet," whereas this use of "poietes" seems consistent with the Greek of Eusebius.[112]

The concordance of the language used in the Testimonium, its flow within the text and its length have formed components of the internal arguments against its authenticity, e.g. that the brief and compact character of the Testimonium stands in marked contrast to Josephus' more extensive accounts presented elsewhere in his works.[113] For example, Josephus' description of the death of John the Baptist includes consideration of his virtues, the theology associated with his baptismal practices, his oratorical skills, his influence, the circumstances of his death, and the belief that the destruction of Herod's army was a divine punishment for Herod's slaughter of John.[114]G. A. Wells has argued against the authenticity of the Testimonium, stating that the passage is noticeably shorter and more cursory than such notices generally used by Josephus in the Antiquities, and that had it been authentic, it would have included more details and a longer introduction.[113]

A further internal argument against the Testimonium's authenticity is the context of the passage in the Antiquities of the Jews.[115] Some scholars argue that the passage is an intrusion into the progression of Josephus' text at the point in which it appears in the Antiquities and breaks the thread of the narrative.[113]

Origen's statement in his Commentary on Matthew (Book X, Chapter 17) that Josephus "did not accept Jesus as Christ", is usually seen as a confirmation of the generally accepted fact that Josephus did not believe Jesus to be the Messiah.[73][116] This forms a key external argument against the total authenticity of the Testimonium in that Josephus, as a Jew, would not have claimed Jesus as the Messiah, and the reference to "he was Christ" in the Testimonium must be a Christian interpolation.[4] Based on this observation alone, Paul L. Maier calls the case for the total authenticity of the Testimonium "hopeless".[4] Almost all modern scholars reject the total authenticity of the Testimonium, while the majority of scholars still hold that it includes an authentic kernel.[4][117]

A different set of external arguments against the authenticity of the Testimonium (either partial or total) are "arguments from silence", e.g. that although twelve Christian authors refer to Josephus before Eusebius in 324 AD, none mentions the Testimonium.[118][119] Given earlier debates by Christian authors about the existence of Jesus, e.g. in Justin Martyr's 2nd century Dialogue with Trypho, it would have been expected that the passage from Josephus would have been used as a component of the arguments.[120]

Even after Eusebius' 324 AD reference, it is not until Jerome's De Viris Illustribus (c. 392 AD) that the passage from Josephus is referenced again, even though the Testimonium's reference to Jesus would seem appropriate in the works of many intervening patristic authors.[118][119] Scholars also point to the silence of Photios as late as the 9th century, and the fact that he does not mention the Testimonium at all in his broad review of Josephus.[121]

A separate argument from silence against the total or partial authenticity of the Testimonium is that a 5th or 6th century table of contents of Josephus (although selective) makes no mention of it.[119]

A final argument from silence relates to Josephus' own writings and questions the authenticity of Testimonium based on the fact that it has no parallel in the Jewish War, which includes a discussion of Pontius Pilate at about the same level of detail.[122][20]

In The Witness To The Historicity of Jesus, Arthur Drews stated that "in the sixteenth century Vossius had a manuscript of the text of Josephus in which there was not a word about Jesus."[123]

Kenneth Olson has argued that the entire Testimonium must have been forged by Eusebius himself, basing his argument on textual similarities between the Testimonium and Eusebius' writings in the Demonstrations of the Gospels.[55]

Zvi Baras, on the other hand, believes that the Testimonium was subject to interpolation before Eusebius.[111] Baras believes that Origen had seen the original Testimonium but that the Testimonium seen by Origen had no negative reference to Jesus, else Origen would have reacted against it.[111] Baras states that the interpolation in the Testimonium took place between Origen and Eusebius.[111]

Paul Maier states that a comparison of Eusebius' reference with the 10th-century Arabic version of the Testimonium due to Agapius of Hierapolis indicates that the Christian interpolation present in the Testimonium must have come early, before Eusebius.[4] Robert E. Van Voorst also states that the interpolation likely took place some time between Origen and Eusebius.[73]

Louis Feldman states that the authenticity of the Josephus passage on James has been "almost universally acknowledged."[124] Feldman states that this passage, above others, indicates that Josephus did say something about Jesus.[125] Feldman states that it would make no sense for Origen to show amazement that Josephus did not acknowledge Jesus as Christ (Book X, Chapter 17), if Josephus had not referred to Jesus at all.[92] Paul L. Maier states that most scholars agree with Feldman's assessment that "few have doubted the genuineness of this passage"[2] Zvi Baras also states that most modern scholars consider the James passage to be authentic.[126]

According to Robert E. Van Voorst the overwhelming majority of scholars consider both the reference to "the brother of Jesus called Christ" and the entire passage that includes it as authentic.[13][115] Van Voorst states that the James passage fits well in the context in the Antiquities and an indication for its authenticity is the lack of the laudatory language that a Christian interpolator would have used to refer to Jesus as "the Lord", or a similar term.[127] Van Voorst also states that the use of a neutral term "called Christ" which neither denies nor affirms Jesus as the Messiah points to authenticity, and indicates that Josephus used it to distinguish Jesus from the many other people called Jesus at the time, in the same way that James is distinguished, given that it was also a common name.[127]

Richard Bauckham states that although a few scholars have questioned the James passage, "the vast majority have considered it to be authentic", and that among the several accounts of the death of James the account in Josephus is generally considered to be historically the most reliable.[128] Bauckham states that the method of killing James by stoning, and the description provided by Josephus via the assembly of the Sanhedrin of judges are consistent with the policies of the Temple authorities towards the early Christian Church at the time.[129]

Andreas Köstenberger considers the James passage to be authentic and states that the James passage attests to the existence of Jesus as a historical person, and that his followers considered him the Messiah.(Köstenberger pages 104–105) Köstenberger states that the statement by Josephus that some people recognized Jesus as the Messiah is consistent with the grammar of Josephus elsewhere but does not imply that Josephus himself considered Jesus the Messiah.(Köstenberger pages 104–105) Köstenberger concurs with John Meier that it is highly unlikely for the passage to be a Christian interpolation given that in New Testament texts James is referred to as the "brother of the Lord" rather than the "brother of Jesus", and that a Christian interpolator would have provided a more detailed account at that point.(Köstenberger pages 104–105)

Claudia Setzer states that few have questioned the authenticity of the James passage, partly based on the observation that a Christian interpolator would have provided more praise for James.[130] Setzer states that the passage indicates that Josephus, a Jewish historian writing towards the end of the first century, could use a neutral tone towards Christians, with some tones of sympathy, implying that they may be worthy of Roman protection.[130]

John Painter states that nothing in the James passage looks suspiciously like a Christian interpolation and that the account can be accepted as historical.(Painter pages 139–142). Painter discusses the role of Ananus and the background to the passage, and states that after being deposed as High Priest for killing James and being replaced by Jesus the son of Damnaeus, Ananus had maintained his influence within Jerusalem through bribery.(Painter page 136) Painter points out that as described in the Antiquities of the Jews (Book 20, Chapter 9, 2) Ananus was bribing both Albinus and Jesus the son of Damnaeus so that his men could take the tithes of other priests outside Jerusalem, to the point that some of whom then starved to death.(Painter pages 139–142). Philip Carrington states that there is no reason to question the authenticity of the Josephus passage on James, and elaborates the background by stating that Ananus continued to remain a power within the Jewish circles at the time even after being deposed, and that it is likely that the charges brought against James by Ananus were not only because of his Christian association but because he objected to the oppressive policies against the poor; hence explaining the later indignation of the more moderate Jewish leaders.[131]

Craig Evans states that almost all modern scholars consider the Josephus passage on John to be authentic in its entirety, and that what Josephus states about John fits well both with the general depiction of John in the New Testament and within the historical context of the activities of other men, their preachings and their promises during that period.[17]

Louis Feldman, who believes the Josephus passage on John is authentic, states that Christian interpolators would have been very unlikely to have devoted almost twice as much space to John (163 words) as to Jesus (89 words).[101] Feldman also states that a Christian interpolator would have likely altered Josephus' passage about John the Baptist to make the circumstances of the death of John become similar to the New Testament, and to indicate that John was a forerunner of Jesus.
[125]

James Dunn states that the accounts of Josephus and the New Testament regarding John the Baptist are closer than they may appear at a first reading.[132] Dunn states that Josephus positions John as a righteous preacher (dikaiosyne) who encourages his followers to practice "righteousness towards one another, and piety towards God" and that Mark 6:20 similarly calls John "a righteous (dikaios) and holy man".[132] Dunn states that Antipas likely saw John as a figure whose ascetic lifestyle and calls for moral reform could provoke a popular uprising on moral grounds, as both Josephus and the New Testament suggest.[132]

Justin Meggitt states that there are fundamental similarities between the Josephus' portrayal of John the Baptist and the New Testament narrative in that in both accounts John is positioned as a preacher of morality, not as someone who had challenged the political authority of Herod Antipas.[133] W. E. Nunnally states that the John passage is considered authentic and that Josephus' emphasis on the egalitarian nature of John's teachings fit well into the biblical and historical traditions.[134]

Paul L. Maier, and separately Zvi Baras state that scholars generally fall into three camps over the authenticity of the Testimonium:

It is entirely authentic

It is entirely a Christian forgery

It contains Christian interpolations in what was Josephus' authentic material about Jesus.[4][135]

Paul Maier states that the first case is generally seen as hopeless given that as a Jew, Josephus would not have claimed Jesus as the Messiah, and that the second option is hardly tenable given the presence of the reference in all Greek manuscripts; thus a large majority of modern scholars accept the third alternative, i.e., partial authenticity.[4] Baras adds that the third position is more plausible because it accepts parts of the passage as genuine, but discounts other parts as interpolations.[135]Craig Evans (and separately Robert Van Voorst) state that most modern scholars accept the position that the Testimonium is partially authentic, had a kernel with an authentic reference to Jesus, and that the analysis of its content and style support this conclusion.[136][117]

While before the advent of literary criticism most scholars considered the Testimonium entirely authentic, thereafter the number of supporters of full authenticity declined.[137] However, most scholars now accept partial authenticity and many attempt to reconstruct their own version of the authentic kernel, and scholars such as Geza Vermes have argued that the overall characterizations of Jesus in the Testimonium are in accord with the style and approach of Josephus.[137][138][139][140][141]

Lester L. Grabbe, on the Testimonium, notes that in two works ("Commentary on Matthew" 10.17 and "Contra Celsum" 1.47) Origen had actually complained that Josephus had mentioned Jesus while at the same time not recognizing Jesus as the messiah and this provided an early independent support of the partial Testimonium in the neutral form.[66] Summarizing speculative arguments from two other writers, Louis Feldman claimed that "The most likely assumption is, then, that the 'Testimonium' as read by Origen contained historical data in a neutral form.".[142]

Zvi Baras, in a book edited by Feldman, also assumes that Origen had seen a version of the Testimonium that included no interpolations.[143] Baras asserts that a Testimonium seen by Origen must have had a neutral tone, and included no derogatory references towards Christians, and hence required no reaction from Origen.[143] Baras claims that the neutral tone of the Testimonium was then modified between the time of Origen and Eusebius, though Baras gives no arguments why this should be more likely than the hypothesis that the Testimonium originated in the Eusebius passage where it first appears.[143]

Some arguments in favor of partial authenticity rely on the language used in the Testimonium, e.g., that the passage calls Jesus "a wise man" which is not laudatory enough for an interpolator, neither is the reference to "amazing deeds".[137] According to Van Voorst, the statement "those that loved him at the first did not forsake him" has the characteristics of Josephus' writing and points to the continuation of Christianity. Van Voorst states that this sentence argues for the continuation of Christianity based on the love for its leader, not the reported appearances after his death.[137] Van Voorst states that it is hard to imagine that the phrase "receive the truth with pleasure" used in the Testimonium is the work of a Christian interpolator, for Christian writers generally avoid the use of the word "pleasure" (ἡδονή in Greek) in a positive sense due to its association with hedonism.[144]

Andreas Köstenberger states that there is strong evidence that parts of the Testimonium are authentic, and that the comparison of the Greek versions with the Arabic version (discovered by Shlomo Pines in the 1970s) provides an indication of the original Josephan text.[6] Köstenberger states that many modern scholars believe that the Arabic version reflects the state of Josephus' original text before it was subject to Christian interpolation.[6] Köstenberger adds that the passage includes vocabulary that is typically Josephan and the style is consistent with that of Josephus.[6] Köstenberger (and separately Van Voorst) state that the Josephus' reference to the large number of followers of Jesus during his public ministry is unlikely to have been due to a Christian scribe familiar with the New Testament accounts, and is hence unlikely to be an interpolation.[6][144]

Regarding the arguments from silence about the scarcity of references to Josephus prior to Origen and Eusebius, Louis Feldman states that Josephus was ignored by early Christian writers before Origen because they were not sufficiently learned, and not sophisticated enough in historical matters.[145]

Chilton and Evans state that the general acceptance of the authenticity of the James passage lends support to the partial authenticity of the Testimonium in that the brief reference to "Jesus, who was called Christ" in AntiquitiesXX, 9, 1 "clearly implies a prior reference" and that "in all probability the Testimonium is that prior reference".[41]Louis Feldman understands the phrase about Jesus in the death of James passage as "the aforementioned Christ", thus relating that passage to the Testimonium, which he views as the first reference to Jesus in the works on Josephus.[103]Paul L. Maier concurs with the analysis of Feldman and states that Josephus' first reference was the Testimonium.[2]Geza Vermes also considers the "who was called Christ" reference in the James passage as the second reference to Jesus in the Antiquities and states that the first reference is likely to be the Testimonium.[140][146]

Claudia Setzer, who believes in the authenticity of a kernel in the Testimonium, states that while "tribe is an odd way to describe Christians" it does not necessarily have negative connotations.[147] Setzer argues for the existence of an authentic kernel because "the style and vocabulary are Josephan" and specific parts (e.g. the use of "wise man") are not what one would expect from a Christian forger.[147] Setzer argues that the Testimonium indicates that Josephus had heard of Jesus and the basic elements surrounding his death, and that he saw Jesus as primarily a miracle worker.[147] Van Voorst also states that calling Christians a "tribe" would have been very out of character for a Christian scribe, while Josephus has used it to refer both to Jewish and Christian groups.[137]

Alice Whealey, who supports the partial authenticity of the Testimonium, has rejected the arguments by Kenneth Olson regarding the total fabrication of the Testimonium by Eusebius, stating that Olson's analysis includes inaccurate readings of both the works of Josephus and Eusebius, as well as logical flaws in his argument.[148]

Craig Evans states that an argument in favor of the partial authenticity of the Testimonium is that the passage does not exaggerate the role played by the Jewish leaders in the death of Jesus.[136] According to Evans, if the passage had been an interpolation after the emergence of conflicts between Jews and Christians, it would have had a more accusative tone, but in its current form reads as one would expect it to read for a passage composed by Josephus towards the end of the first century.[136]

Geza Vermes believes in the partial authenticity of the Testimonium and the existence of a reference to Jesus within it.[138][140] Vermes states that if the Testimonium had been the work of a Christian forger, it would have placed blame on the Jewish leaders, but as is it is "perfectly in line" with the attitude of Josephus towards Pilate.[140] Vermes also states that the detached depiction of the followers of Jesus is not the work of a Christian interpolator.[140] Vermes calls the Jesus notice in the Testimonium a "veritable tour de force" in which Josephus plays the role of a neutral witness.[140]

Steve Mason has argued for partial authenticity for the "Testimonium" because no other parts of any of the works of Josephus have been contested to have had scribal tempering, Christian copyists were usually conservative when transmitting texts in general, and seeing that the works of Philo were unaltered by Christian scribes through the centuries strongly support that it is very unlikely that the passage was invented out of thin air by a Christian scribe. Philo often wrote in a way that was favorable to Christian ideas and yet no Christian scribes took advantage of that to insert Jesus or Christian beliefs into Philo's text.[149]

Robert Van Voorst states that most modern scholars believe that the Testimonium is partially authentic, and has a reference to Jesus.[115] However, he states that scholars are divided on the tone of the original reference and while some scholars believe that it had a negative tone which was softened by Christian interpolators, others believe that it had a neutral tone, in keeping with the style and approach of Josephus regarding the issue.[115] According to Van Voorst, scholars who support the negative reconstruction contend that the reference read something like "source of further trouble in Jesus a wise man" and that it stated "he was the so-called Christ".[115] Van Voorst states that most scholars support a neutral reconstruction which states "Around this time lived Jesus, a wise man" and includes no reference to "he was the Christ".[115] Van Voorst states that if the original references to Jesus had had a negative tone, the Christian scribes would have likely deleted it entirely.[115] Van Voorst also states that the neutral reconstruction fits better with the Arabic Testimonium discovered by Pines in the 1970s.[73] Van Voorst states that the neutral reconstruction is supported by the majority of scholars because it involves far less conjectural wording and fits better with the style of Josephus.[115]

Craig Blomberg states that if the three elements "lawful to call him a man", "he was the Christ" and the reference to the resurrection are removed from the Testimonium the rest of the passage flows smoothly within the context, fits the style of Josephus and is likely to be authentic.[150] Blomberg adds that after the removal of these three elements (which are likely interpolations) from the Greek versions the remaining passage fits well with the Arabic version and supports the authenticity of the reference to the execution of Jesus by Pilate.[150]Joel B. Green also states that the removal of some elements from the Testimonium produces a passage that is likely to be an authentic reference to the death of Jesus.[151]

James Dunn states that the works of Josephus include two separate references to Jesus and although there are some interpolations in the Testimonium, there is "broad consensus" among scholars regarding the nature of an authentic reference to Jesus in the Testimonium and what the passage would look like without the interpolations.[9] Based on this reconstruction, it is likely the original passage read:[9][151]

Now there was about this time Jesus, a wise man. For he was a doer of startling deeds, a teacher of such men as receive the truth with pleasure. And he gained a following both among many Jews and many of Greek origin. And when Pilate, at the suggestion of the principal men amongst us, condemned him to the cross, those that loved him at the first did not forsake him. And the tribe of Christians, so named from him, are not extinct at this day.

In this passage, which is based on Meier's reconstruction, Jesus is called a "wise man", but "lawful to call him a man" and "he was the Christ" are removed, as is the reference to the resurrection.[9][151]

Geza Vermes has performed a detailed analysis of the Testimonium and modified it to remove what he considers the interpolations.[138][140] In Vermes' reconstruction "there was Jesus a wise man" is retained, but the reference to "he was the Christ" is changed to "he was called the Christ" and the resurrection reference is omitted.[140] Vermes states that the Testimonium provides Josephus' authentic portrayal of Jesus, depicting him as a wise teacher and miracle worker with an enthusiastic group of followers who remained faithful to him after his crucifixion by Pilate, up to the time of Josephus.[140]

Louis Feldman states that it is significant that the passages on James, John and the Testimonium are found in the Antiquities and not in the Jewish Wars, but provides three explanations for their absence from the Jewish Wars.[20] One explanation is that the Antiquities covers the time period involved at a greater length than the Jewish Wars.[20] The second explanation is that during the gap between the writing of the Jewish Wars (c. 70 AD) and Antiquities (after 90 AD) Christians had become more important in Rome and were hence given attention in the Antiquities.[20] Another explanation is that the passages were added to the Antiquities to highlight the power of the Pharisees, but he considers the last explanation less likely than the others.[20]

One of the arguments against the authenticity of the James passage has been that in the Jewish Wars Josephus portrays the High Priest Ananus in a positive manner, while in the Antiquities he writes of Ananus in a negative tone.[92] Louis Feldman rejects these arguments against the authenticity of the James passage and states that in several other unrelated cases the Jewish War also differs from the Antiquities, and that an interpolator would have made the two accounts correspond more closely to each other, not make them differ.[92]

The twenty-year gap between the writing of the Jewish Wars and the Antiquities has also been used to explain some of the differences in tone between them.[152]Clemens Thoma provides an explanation for this based on the observation that Josephus may have learned of the details of the actions of Annanus in the twenty-year gap between the writing of the Jewish Wars and the Antiquities, and thus avoided a positive tone when writing of Ananus in the Antiquities.[152]

John Painter states that the difference in the context for the Jewish Wars and the Antiquities may also account for some of the differences in tone between them, e.g. when writing of Ananus in a positive tone in the Jewish Wars the context was Ananus' prudence in avoiding a war and hence Josephus considered that a positive aspect.[153] However, when writing in the Antiquities about the actions of Ananus which resulted in his demotion from the High Priesthood, the context required the manifestation of a negative aspect of Ananus' character.[153]

^ abThe Jesus Legend by G. A. Wells 1996 ISBN0812693345 page 48: "... that Josephus made some reference to Jesus, which has been retouched by a Christian hand. This is the view argued by Meier as by most scholars today particularly since S. Pines..."

^ abSample quotes from previous references: Van Voorst (ISBN0-8028-4368-9 page 83) states that the overwhelming majority of scholars consider both the reference to "the brother of Jesus called Christ" and the entire passage that includes it as authentic." Bauckham (ISBN90-04-11550-1 pages 199–203) states: "the vast majority have considered it to be authentic". Meir (ISBN978-0-8254-3260-6 pages 108–109) agrees with Feldman that few have questioned the authenticity of the James passage. Setzer (ISBN0-8006-2680-X pages 108–109) also states that few have questioned its authenticity.

^For example, an ancient Table of Contents of the eighteenth book of the Antiquities omits any reference to the passage about Jesus, as does the Josephus codex of the patriarch Photius. Nor is it clear if the Testimonium existed in the Josephus exemplar used by Origen. See Schreckenberg & Schubert 1992b, pp. 57–58.

^ abcdeLester Grabbe (2013). "3. Jesus Who is Called the Christ: References to Jesus Outside Christian Sources". In Verenna, Thomas S.; Thompson, Thomas L. "Is This Not The Carpenter?" : The Question of The Historicity of the Figure of Jesus. pp. 61–67. ISBN9781844657292.

^Quoting Mizugaki, page 335: "Origen notes with favour that Josephus seeks the cause of the fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of the Temple in the assassination of James the Just but gravely adds that Josephus ought to have stated that the calamity happened because the Jews killed Christ."

^Rothschild, Claire (2011). ""Echo of a Whisper": The Uncertain Authenticity of Josephus' Witness to John the Baptist". In Hellholm, David; Vegge, Tor; Norderval, Øyvind et al. Ablution, Initiation, and Baptism: Late Antiquity, Early Judaism, and Early Christianity. Walter de Gruyter. ISBN978-3-11-024751-0 page 271

Flavius Josephus; Leeming, Henry; Osinkina, Lyubov V.; Leeming, Katherine (2003). Josephus' Jewish War and Its Slavonic Version: A Synoptic Comparison of the English Translation by H. St. Thackeray with the Critical Edition by N.A. Meščerskij of the Slavonic Version in the Vilna Manuscript Translated into English by H. Leeming and L. Osinkina. Leiden: Brill. ISBN978-90-04-11438-8.

Pines, Shlomo (1971). An Arabic version of the Testimonium Flavianum and its implications. Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities.

Rothschild, Claire (2011). ""Echo of a Whisper": The Uncertain Authenticity of Josephus' Witness to John the Baptist". In Hellholm, David; Vegge, Tor; Norderval, Øyvind; et al. Ablution, Initiation, and Baptism: Late Antiquity, Early Judaism, and Early Christianity. Walter de Gruyter. ISBN978-3-11-024751-0.

1.
Antiquities of the Jews
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Antiquities of the Jews contains an account of history of the Jewish people, written in Greek for Josephus gentile patrons. In the first ten volumes, Josephus follows the events of the books of the Hebrew Bible beginning with the creation of Adam. The second ten volumes continue the history of the Jewish people beyond the biblical text and this work, along with Josephuss other major work, The Jewish War, provides valuable background material to historians wishing to understand 1st-century AD Judaism and the early Christian period. In the preface of Antiquities of the Jews, Josephus provides his motivation for composing such a large work, josephan scholar Louis Feldman highlights several of the misconceptions about the Jewish people that were being circulated in Josephus time. In particular, the Jews were thought to lack great historical figures and they were also accused of harboring hostility toward non-Jews, and were thought to be generally lacking in loyalty, respect for authority, and charity. With these harsh accusations against the Jews fluttering about the Roman empire, Josephus, formerly Joseph ben Matthias, such a work is often called an apologia, as it pleads the case of a group of people or set of beliefs to a larger audience. In order to accomplish this goal, Josephus omitted certain accounts in the Jewish narrative, for example, the Song of the Sea sung by Moses and the people of Israel after their deliverance at the Red Sea is completely omitted in Josephus text. He does mention, however, that Moses composed a song to God in hexameter—a rather unusual scheme for an ancient Hebrew. Josephus also writes that Abraham taught science to the Egyptians, who in turn taught the Greeks, and that Moses set up a senatorial priestly aristocracy, which like Rome resisted monarchy. Thus, in an attempt to make the Jewish history more palatable to his Greco-Roman audience, in another example, apparently due to his concern with pagan antisemitism, Josephus omitted the entire episode of the golden calf from his account of the Israelites at Mount Sinai. Josephus Judean Antiquities is a source for the history of the Intertestamental period. Josephus also adds an account of his personal life, Vita. The extant copies of work, which all derive from Christian sources. The long one has come to be known as the Testimonium Flavianum, if genuine, it is an early extrabiblical record of Jesus, and as such is sometimes cited as independent evidence for the historical existence of Jesus. The earliest complete Greek manuscript of the Antiquities dates from the eleventh century, one of the best known translations of this work was provided by William Whiston in 1737, which has been in print continuously since then. However, the Loeb Classical Library has a recent translation by Henry St. John Thackeray and Ralph Marcus. A cross-reference apparatus for the Works of Josephus and the Biblical canon also exists

2.
Jesus
–
In Christology, the Person of Christ refers to the study of the human and divine natures of Jesus Christ as they co-exist within one person. There is no discussion in the New Testament regarding the dual nature of the Person of Christ as both divine and human. Hence, since the days of Christianity theologians have debated various approaches to the understanding of these natures. In the period following the Apostolic Age, specific beliefs such as Arianism and Docetism were criticized. On the other end of the spectrum, Docetism argued that Jesus physical body was an illusion, docetic teachings were attacked by St. Ignatius of Antioch and were eventually abandoned by proto-orthodox Christians. However, after the First Council of Nicaea in 325 the Logos, historically in the Alexandrian school of christology, Jesus Christ is the eternal Logos paradoxically humanized in history, a divine Person who became enfleshed, uniting himself to the human nature. The views of these schools can be summarized as follows, Alexandria, Antioch, Logos assumes a specific human being The First Council of Ephesus in 431 debated a number of views regarding the Person of Christ. At the same gathering the council debated the doctrines of monophysitism or miaphysitism. The council rejected Nestorianism and adopted the term hypostatic union, referring to divine, the language used in the 431 declaration was further refined at the 451 Council of Chalcedon. However, the Chalcedon creed was not accepted by all Christians, because Saint Augustine died in 430 he did not participate in the Council of Ephesus in 431 or Chalcedon in 451, but his ideas had some impact on both councils. On the other hand, the major theological figure of the Middle Ages. The Third Council of Constantinople in 680 held that both divine and human wills exist in Jesus, with the divine will having precedence, leading and guiding the human will. John Calvin maintained that there was no element in the Person of Christ which could be separated from the person of The Word. Calvin also emphasized the importance of the Work of Christ in any attempt at understanding the Person of Christ, the study of the Person of Christ continued into the 20th century, with modern theologians such as Karl Rahner and Hans von Balthasar. Balthasar argued that the union of the human and divine natures of Christ was achieved not by the absorption of human attributes, thus in his view the divine nature of Christ was not affected by the human attributes and remained forever divine

3.
Jesus in Christianity
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Christians believe that Jesus is the Messiah and believe that through his death and resurrection, humans can be reconciled to God and thereby are offered salvation and the promise of eternal life. The choice Jesus made thus counter-positions him as a new man of morality and obedience, most Christians believe that Jesus was both human and divine—the Son of God. Jesus, having become fully human in all respects, suffered the pains and temptations of a mortal man, as fully God, he defeated death and rose to life again. According to the Bible, God raised him from the dead and he ascended to heaven to sit at the Right Hand of God, and he will return to earth again for the Last Judgment and the establishment of the Kingdom of God in the World to Come. Although Christian views of Jesus vary, it is possible to summarize key elements of the shared beliefs among major denominations based on their catechetical or confessional texts. Christian views of Jesus are derived from biblical sources, particularly from the canonical Gospels. Christians predominantly hold that these works are historically true and those groups or denominations committed to what are considered biblically orthodox Christianity nearly all agree on the following points, Christians believe that the mother of Jesus was a virgin. Christians believe that Jesus was a human being who was also fully God, Christians believe that Jesus came into the world as the son of only one earthly parent, Mary. Christians believe that Jesus never sinned or did anything wrong, Christians believe that Jesus was eventually martyred, was buried in a tomb, and then on the third day came back to life. Christians believe that because he rose from the tomb on the third day, Christians believe that Jesus eventually ascended back to God the Father. Christians believe that Jesus will come back to earth a second time, the five major milestones in the gospel narrative of the life of Jesus are his Baptism, Transfiguration, Crucifixion, Resurrection and Ascension. These are usually bracketed by two episodes, his Nativity at the beginning and the sending of the Paraclete at the end. The gospel accounts of the teachings of Jesus are often presented in terms of specific categories involving his works and words, e. g. his ministry, Christians not only attach theological significance to the works of Jesus, but also to his name. Devotions to the name of Jesus go back to the earliest days of Christianity and these exist today both in Eastern and Western Christianity—both Catholic and Protestant. Christians predominantly profess that through Jesus life, death, and resurrection and his death on a cross is understood as a redemptive sacrifice, the source of humanitys salvation and the atonement for sin which had entered human history through the sin of Adam. But who do you say that I am, only Simon Peter answered him, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God — Matthew 16, 15-16 Jesus is mediator, but…the title means more that someone between God and man. He is not just a third party between God and humanity…, as true God he brings God to mankind. As true man he brings mankind to God, most Christians generally consider Jesus to be the Christ, the long awaited Messiah, as well as the one and only Son of God

4.
Christ (title)
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In Christianity, the Christ is a title for the saviour and redeemer who would bring salvation to the Jewish people and mankind. Christians believe that Jesus is the Jewish messiah called Christ in both the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Old Testament, Christ, used by Christians as both a name and a title, is synonymous with Jesus. The role of the Christ in Christianity originated from the concept of the messiah in Judaism. Though the conceptions of the messiah in each religion are similar, for the most part they are distinct from one due to the split of early Christianity. Jesus came to be called Jesus Christ by his followers after his crucifixion and resurrection, Christians believe that the messianic prophecies were fulfilled in his mission, death, and resurrection. The Pauline epistles, the earliest texts of the New Testament, the word Christ was originally a title, but later became part of the name Jesus Christ. It is, however, still used as a title, in the reciprocal use Christ Jesus, meaning the Messiah Jesus. The followers of Jesus became known as Christians because they believed Jesus to be the Khristós or Mashiach prophesied in the Hebrew Bible. Jesus was not, and is not, accepted in Judaism as a Jewish messiah, religious Jews still await their messiahs first coming and the Messianic prophecies of Jewish tradition to be accomplished. Religious Christians believe in the Second Coming of Christ, and they await the rest of Christian messianic prophecies to be fulfilled. Muslims accept Jesus as al-Masih, the messiah in Islam, but dont believe that the messiah is divine or the Son of God, but do believe he will come again. The area of Christian theology called Christology is primarily concerned with the nature and person of Jesus Christ as recorded in the canonical gospels, the word Christ appears in English and in most European languages. English-speakers now often use Christ as if it were a name, one part of the name Jesus Christ and its usage in Christ Jesus emphasizes its nature as a title. The spelling Christ in English became standardized in the 18th century, when, in the spirit of the Enlightenment, the spelling Christ in English is attested from the 14th century. In modern and ancient usage, even in secular terminology, Christ usually refers to Jesus, at the time of Jesus, there was no single form of Second Temple Judaism, and there were significant political, social, and religious differences among the various Jews groups. However, for centuries the Jews had used the term moshiach to refer to their expected deliverer, the Greek word messias appears only twice in the Septuagint of the promised prince. This title was used when a name was wanted for the one who was to be at once King. The New Testament states that the long-awaited messiah had come and describes this savior as the Christ

5.
Christology
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Christology is the field of study within Christian theology which is primarily concerned with the nature and person of Jesus as recorded in the canonical Gospels and the epistles of the New Testament. Primary considerations include the relationship of Jesus nature and person with the nature, as such, Christology is concerned with the details of Jesus ministry, his acts and teachings, to arrive at a clearer understanding of who he is in his person, and his role in salvation. The views of Paul the Apostle provided a major component of the Christology of the Apostolic Age, Pauls central themes included the notion of the pre-existence of Christ and the worship of Christ as Kyrios. The pre-existence of Christ became a theme of Christology. Proponents of Christs deity argue the Old Testament has many cases of Christophany, Christophany is often considered a more accurate term than the term theophany due to the belief that all the visible manifestations of God are in fact the preincarnate Christ. Many argue that the appearances of the Angel of the Lord in the Old Testament were the preincarnate Christ, many understand the angel of the Lord as a true theophany. From the time of Justin on, the figure has been regarded as the preincarnate Logos, following the Apostolic Age, the early church engaged in fierce and often politicized debate on many interrelated issues. Christology became a focus of these debates, and every one of the first seven ecumenical councils addressed Christological issues. The second through fourth of these councils are generally entitled Christological councils, the Council of Chalcedon in 451 issued a formulation of the being of Christ — that of two natures, one human and one divine, united with neither confusion nor division. Chalcedonian Christianity - Eastern Orthodox, Roman Catholic, and many Protestant Christians - continue to advocate this doctrine of the hypostatic union, due to politically-charged differences in the 4th century, schisms developed, and the first denominations formed. In the 13th century, Saint Thomas Aquinas provided the first systematic Christology that consistently resolved a number of the existing issues, in his Christology from above, Aquinas also championed the principle of perfection of Christs human attributes. The Middle Ages also witnessed the emergence of the image of Jesus as a friend. Over the centuries, a number of terms and concepts have been developed within the framework of Christology to address the seemingly simple questions, a good deal of theological debate has ensued and significant schisms within Christian denominations took place in the process of providing answers to these questions. After the Middle Ages, systematic approaches to Christology were developed, the term Christology from above refers to approaches that begin with the divinity and pre-existence of Christ as the Logos, as expressed in the prologue to the Gospel of John. These approaches interpret the works of Christ in terms of his divinity, Christology from above was emphasized in the ancient Church, beginning with Ignatius of Antioch in the second century. The term Christology from below, on the hand, refers to approaches that begin with the human aspects and the ministry of Jesus and move towards his divinity. The concept of Cosmic Christology, first elaborated by Saint Paul, the terms functional, ontological and soteriological have been used to refer to the perspectives that analyze the works, the being and the salvific standpoints of Christology. Some essential sub-topics within the field of Christology include the incarnation, the resurrection, the term monastic Christology has been used to describe spiritual approaches developed by Anselm of Canterbury, Peter Abelard and Bernard of Clairvaux

6.
Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament
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Two names and a variety of titles are used to refer to Jesus in the New Testament. In Christianity, the two names Jesus and Emmanuel that refer to Jesus in the New Testament have salvific attributes, one element of the process of understanding and proclaiming Jesus was the attribution of titles to him. In time, some of titles gathered significant Christological significance. Christians have attached theological significance to the Holy Name of Jesus, the use of the name of Jesus in petitions is stressed in John 16,23 when Jesus states, If you ask the Father anything in my name he will give it you. There is widespread belief among Christians that the name Jesus is not merely a sequence of identifying symbols, in the New Testament the name Jesus is given both in the Gospel of Luke and the Gospel of Matthew, and Emmanuel only in Matthew. In Luke 1,31 an angel tells Mary to name her child Jesus, the statement in Matthew 1,21 you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins associates salvific attributes to the name Jesus in Christian theology. The first index of the book is entitled A collection of the Names and Titles given to Jesus Christ, with 198 names listed, there have been a number of proposals as to the origin and etymological origin of the name Jesus. The name is related to the Hebrew form יְהוֹשֻׁעַ‎ Joshua, which is a name first mentioned within the Biblical tradition in Exodus 17,9 referring to one of Moses companions. These Bible verses refer to ten individuals and this historical change may have been due to a phonological shift whereby guttural phonemes weakened, including. Usually, the traditional theophoric element יהו‎ was shortened at the beginning of a name to יו‎, in the contraction of to, the vowel is instead fronted. During the post-Biblical period, the name was adopted by Aramaic. By the time the New Testament was written, the Septuagint had already transliterated ישוע into Koine Greek as closely as possible in the 3rd-century BCE, the Greek writings of Philo of Alexandria and Josephus frequently mention this name. It also occurs in the Greek New Testament at Acts 7,45 and Hebrews 4,8, from Greek, Ἰησοῦς moved into Latin at least by the time of the Vetus Latina. The morphological jump this time was not as large as previous changes between language families, Ἰησοῦς was transliterated to Latin IESVS, where it stood for many centuries. The Latin name has an irregular declension, with a genitive, dative, ablative, and vocative of Jesu, accusative of Jesum, and nominative of Jesus. Minuscule letters were developed around 800 and some time later the U was invented to distinguish the sound from the consonantal sound. Similarly, Greek minuscules were invented about the time, prior to that the name was written in Capital letters, ΙΗCΟΥC or abbreviated as, ΙΗC with a line over the top. Modern English Jesus /ˈdʒiːzəs/ derives from Early Middle English Iesu, the name participated in the Great Vowel Shift in late Middle English

7.
Life of Jesus in the New Testament
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The four canonical gospels of the New Testament are the primary sources of information for the narrative of the life of Jesus. And the Acts of the Apostles says more about the Ascension episode than the canonical gospels, the genealogy and Nativity of Jesus are described in two of the four canonical gospels, Matthew and Luke. While Luke traces the genealogy upwards towards Adam and God, Matthew traces it downwards towards Jesus, both gospels state that Jesus was begotten not by Joseph, but by God. Both accounts trace Joseph back to King David and from there to Abraham and these lists are identical between Abraham and David, but they differ almost completely between David and Joseph. Matthew gives Jacob as Joseph’s father and Luke says Joseph was the son of Heli, attempts at explaining the differences between the genealogies have varied in nature. Much of modern scholarship interprets them as literary inventions, the Luke and Matthew accounts of the birth of Jesus have a number of points in common, both have Jesus being born in Bethlehem, in Judea, to a virgin mother. In the Luke account Joseph and Mary travel from their home in Nazareth for the census to Bethlehem, angels proclaim him a savior for all people, and shepherds come to adore him, the family then returns to Nazareth. In Matthew, The Magi follow a star to Bethlehem, where the family are living, to bring gifts to Jesus, King Herod massacres all males under two years old in Bethlehem in order to kill Jesus, but Jesuss family flees to Egypt and later settles in Nazareth. Over the centuries, biblical scholars have attempted to reconcile these contradictions, generally, they consider the issue of historicity as secondary, given that gospels were primarily written as theological documents rather than chronological timelines. The five major milestones in the New Testament narrative of the life of Jesus are his Baptism, in the gospels, the ministry of Jesus starts with his Baptism by John the Baptist, when he is about thirty years old. Jesus then begins preaching in Galilee and gathers disciples, after the proclamation of Jesus as Christ, three of the disciples witness his Transfiguration. After the death of John the Baptist and the Transfiguration, Jesus starts his journey to Jerusalem. Jesus makes an entry into Jerusalem, and once there friction with the Pharisees increases. The Gospel of Luke states that Jesus was about 30 years of age at the start of his ministry, a chronology of Jesus typically has the date of the start of his ministry estimated at around 27-29 and the end in the range 30-36. Jesus Early Galilean ministry begins when after his Baptism, he back to Galilee from his time in the Judean desert. The Major Galilean ministry which begins in Matthew 8 includes the commissioning of the Twelve Apostles, the Final Galilean ministry begins after the death of John the Baptist as Jesus prepares to go to Jerusalem. In the Later Judean ministry Jesus starts his journey to Jerusalem through Judea. As Jesus travels towards Jerusalem, in the Later Perean ministry, about one third the way down from the Sea of Galilee along the River Jordan, the Final ministry in Jerusalem is sometimes called the Passion Week and begins with Jesus triumphal entry into Jerusalem

8.
Gospel
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A gospel is an account describing the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth. Christianity places a value on the four canonical gospels, which it considers to be revelations from God. This position however, requires a view of Biblical inerrancy. The word gospel derives from the Old English gōd-spell, meaning good news or glad tidings, the gospel was considered the good news of the coming Kingdom of Messiah, and of redemption through the life and death and resurrection of Jesus, the central Christian message. The Greek word euangelion is also the source of the terms evangelist, the authors of the four canonical Christian gospels are known as the Four Evangelists. Paul the Apostle used the term εὐαγγέλιον when he reminded the people of the church at Corinth of the gospel I preached to you, the earliest extant use of gospel to denote a particular genre of literature dates to the 2nd century. Justin Martyr in the Apology wrote of. the apostles, in the memoirs composed by them, more generally, gospels compose a genre of early Christian writings. Gospels that did not become canonical also circulated in Early Christianity, many, such as the work known today as Gospel of Thomas, lack the narrative framework typical of a gospel. Scholars hold a wide spectrum of views on the origins and composition of the gospels, for example, the vast majority of material in Mark is also present in either Luke or Matthew or both, suggesting that Mark was a source for Matthew and Luke. He writes that the four gospels were probably all written by the end of the first century. But they did not yet at that time have a consistent narrative, in 170 Tatian sought to find a solution by composing a single narrative out of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, with some additional oral material. Richies concludes that the gospel passages themselves can be unclear, and some of the messages within are straightforwardly ambiguous, the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke are considered synoptic gospels on the basis of many similarities between them that are not shared by the Gospel of John. Synoptic means here that they can be seen or read together, the fourth gospel, the Gospel of John, presents a very different picture of Jesus and his ministry from the synoptics. Of the many gospels written in antiquity, only four came to be accepted as part of the New Testament. An insistence upon there being a canon of four gospels, and no others, was a theme of Irenaeus of Lyons. Irenaeus was ultimately successful in declaring that the four gospels collectively and he also supported reading each gospel in light of the others. This canon, which corresponds to the modern Catholic canon, was used in the Vulgate, Gospel of Matthew Gospel of John Gospel of Luke Gospel of Mark This order is found in the following manuscripts, Bezae, Monacensis, Washingtonianus, Tischendorfianus IV, Uncial 0234. Although there is no set order of the four gospels in patristic lists or discussions, moody Smith suggests that the standard order of Matthew-Mark-Luke-John projects a kind of intention that can scarcely be ignored

9.
Gospel harmony
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A gospel harmony is an attempt to compile the Christian canonical gospels into a single account. This may take the form either of a single, merged narrative, or a format with one column for each gospel, technically known as a synopsis. The construction of harmonies has always favoured by more conservative scholars. Students of higher criticism, on the hand, see the divergences between the Gospel accounts as reflecting the construction of traditions by the early Christian communities. The earliest known harmony is the Diatessaron by Tatian in the 2nd century, the 16th century witnessed a major increase in the introduction of Gospel harmonies and the parallel column structure became widespread. At this time visual representations also started appearing, depicting the Life of Christ in terms of a gospel harmony. A Gospel harmony is an attempt to collate the Christian canonical gospels into a single gospel account and this approach, almost as old as the gospels themselves, has largely been abandoned in the modern era. Harmonists must either choose which they think is correct, or conclude that separate events are described, a similar problem arises with the centurion whose servant is healed, at a distance. In the Matthew Gospel he comes to Jesus, in the Luke version he sends Jewish elders, since these are clearly describing the same event, the harmonist must decide which is the more accurate description. The terms harmony and synopsis have been used to refer to approaches that aim to achieve Gospel harmony, technically, a harmony weaves together sections of scripture into a narrative, merging the four Gospels. There are four types of harmony, radical, synthetic, sequential. A synopsis, much like a parallel harmony focuses on key events and brings together similar texts or accounts in parallel format, usually in columns. Harmonies may also have a form and be undertaken to create narratives for artistic purposes. To illustrate the concept of harmony, a simple example of a synopsis fragment is shown here. A more comprehensive parallel harmony appears in a section below, specific issues at times resists distillation into a single harmonized chronology, as the variety of readings that appear in multiple harmony efforts attests. An example is determining whether Jesus cursed the fig tree before or after the Cleansing of the Temple, however, the construction of harmonies remains an important element of biblical study and to gain a better understanding of the Gospel accounts of the life of Jesus. Tatians influential Diatessaron harmony which dates to about AD160 was perhaps the very first harmony. The Diatessaron reduced the number of verses in the four gospels from 3,780 to 2,769 without missing any event of teaching in the life of Jesus from any of the gospels, some scholars believe Tatian may have drawn on one or more noncanonical Gospels

10.
New Testament places associated with Jesus
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The New Testament narrative of the life of Jesus refers to a number of locations in the Holy Land and a Flight into Egypt. In these accounts the principal locations for the ministry of Jesus were Galilee and Judea, with activities taking place in surrounding areas such as Perea. This phase of activities in the Galilee area draws to an end approximately in Matthew 17, after the death of the Baptist, and Jesus proclamation as Christ by Peter his ministry continues along his final journey towards Jerusalem through Perea and Judea. The journey ends with his entry into Jerusalem in Matthew 21. The final part of Jesus ministry then takes place during the his last week in Jerusalem which ends in his crucifixion. In the New Testament accounts, the locations for the ministry of Jesus were Galilee and Judea, with activities also taking place in surrounding areas such as Perea. The gospel narrative of the ministry of Jesus is traditionally separated into sections that have a geographical nature, Galilean ministry, Jesus ministry begins when after his baptism, he returns to Galilee, and preaches in the synagogue of Capernaum. The first disciples of Jesus encounter him near the Sea of Galilee, Jesus ministry in the Galilee area draws to an end with the death of John the Baptist. After these events, a portion of the gospel narratives deal with Jesus final journey to Jerusalem through Perea and Judea. As Jesus travels towards Jerusalem through Perea he returns to the area where he was baptized, final week in Jerusalem, The final part of Jesus ministry begins with his triumphal entry into Jerusalem after the raising of Lazarus episode which takes place in Bethany. The New Testament accounts of the appearances of Jesus and his ascension are also in the Judea area. Ænon, The Gospel of John refers to Enon near Salim as the place where John the Baptist performed baptisms in the River Jordan, Bethsaida, Mark 8, 22-26 includes the account of the healing of the Blind man of Bethsaida. Cana, John 2, 1-11 includes Marriage at Cana as the first miracle performed by Jesus, Capernaum, The pericope of Jesus in the synagogue of Capernaum amounts to the beginning of the public ministry of Jesus in the New Testament narrative. Capernaum is mentioned in the gospels a number of times and other such as healing the paralytic at Capernaum take place there. Chorazin, In Matthew 11,23 and Luke 10, 13-15 this village in Galilee appears in the context of the Rejection of Jesus, Gennesaret, This town was on the northwestern shore of the lake Galilee. 1st century historian Flavius Josephus refers to the area as having rich soil. The town was perhaps halfway between Capernaum and Magdala, the town appears in the Jesus healing in the land of Gennesaret episode in Matthew 14, 34-36 and Mark 6, 53-56. Mount of Transfiguration, The exact location of the mountain for the Transfiguration of Jesus is debated among scholars, Nain The pericope of Young man from Nain appears in Luke 7, 11-17

11.
Virgin birth of Jesus
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The virgin birth of Jesus is the belief that Jesus was conceived in the womb of his mother Mary through the Holy Spirit without the agency of a human father and born while Mary was still a virgin. The New Testament references are Matthew 1, 18-25 and Luke 1 and it is believed by Christians to follow the prophetic message in Isaiah 7,14. It is not expressly mentioned elsewhere in the Christian scriptures, the virgin birth was universally accepted in the Christian church by the 2nd century and, except for some minor sects, was not seriously challenged until the 18th century. Muslims also accept the virgin birth of Jesus,18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit,19 And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. 21 She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus,22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet,23 Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel. 24 When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, he took his wife,25, and he called his name Jesus. 26 In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth,27 to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, and the virgins name was Mary. 28 And he came to her and said, Greetings, O favored one,29 But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. 30 And the angel said to her, Do not be afraid, Mary,31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David,33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever,34 And Mary said to the angel, How will this be, since I am a virgin. 35 And the angel answered her, The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you, therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God. 36 And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son,37 For nothing will be impossible with God. 38 And Mary said, Behold, I am the servant of the Lord, and the angel departed from her. Jesus miraculous conception by the Holy Spirit is found only in the gospels of Matthew, both probably date from the period 80-100 AD, and both were originally anonymous. Matthew 1,23 quotes a prophecy from the Isaiah as the basis for the virgin birth, in Isaiah the Immanuel prophecy has an immediate aim, but Matthew uses it to find patterns of Gods dealings with Israel rather than a single and specific fulfillment. In the genealogy preceding his birth story Matthew calls Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ

12.
Nativity of Jesus
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The nativity of Jesus or birth of Jesus is described in the gospels of Luke and Matthew. The two accounts agree that Jesus was born in Bethlehem in the time of Herod the Great to a virgin whose name was Mary. In Christian theology the nativity marks the incarnation of Jesus as the second Adam, in fulfillment of the divine will of God, undoing the damage caused by the fall of the first man, Adam. The artistic depiction of the nativity has been an important subject for Christian artists since the 4th century, the nativity plays a major role in the Christian liturgical year. Christian congregations of the Western tradition begin observing the season of Advent four Sundays before Christmas, the traditional feast-day of his birth, which falls on December 25. The date of birth for Jesus of Nazareth is not stated in the gospels or in any secular text, the Gospels of both Matthew and Luke place the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem. However, Luke 1, 26–27 clearly states that Mary lived in Nazareth before the birth of Jesus, at the time of the Annunciation. The Gospel of Luke states that Mary gave birth to Jesus and placed him in a manger “because there was no place for them in the inn, but does not say exactly where Jesus was born. This could be a place to keep the sheep within the Bethlehem area, in the 2nd century, Justin Martyr stated that Jesus had been born in a cave outside the town, while the Protoevangelium of James described a legendary birth in a cave nearby. In Contra Celsum 1.51, Origen, who from around 215 travelled throughout Palestine, the Quranic birth of Jesus, like the Gospels, places the virgin birth of Jesus in Bethlehem. This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about, Mary, the mother of Jesus, was betrothed to Joseph, but was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. Joseph intended to divorce her quietly, but an angel told him in a dream that he should take Mary as his wife and name the child Jesus, Joseph awoke and did all that the angel commanded. Chapter 1 of Matthews Gospel recounts Jesus birth and naming and the beginning of chapter 2 reveals that Jesus was born in Bethlehem during the time of Herod the Great. Magi from the east came to Herod and asked him where they would find the King of the Jews, advised by the chief priests and teachers, Herod sent the Magi to Bethlehem, where they worshiped the child and gave him gifts. When they had departed an angel appeared to Joseph in a dream and warned him to take the child and his mother and flee to Egypt, for Herod intended to kill him. The Holy Family remained in Egypt until Herod died, when Joseph took them to Nazareth in Galilee for fear of Herods son who now ruled in Jerusalem, so was fulfilled what was said through the prophets, that he would be called a Nazarene. When the time of the birth drew near the Roman Emperor commanded a census of all the world, and Joseph took Mary to Bethlehem, the city of David, as he was of the House of David. In accordance with the Jewish law his parents presented the infant Jesus at the Temple in Jerusalem, Joseph and Mary then returned to Nazareth

13.
Baptism of Jesus
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The baptism of Jesus marks the beginning of his public ministry. This event is described in the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Johns gospel does not directly describe Jesus baptism. Most modern theologians view the baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist as an event to which a high degree of certainty can be assigned. The baptism is one of the five major milestones in the narrative of the life of Jesus, the others being the Transfiguration, Crucifixion, Resurrection. Most Christian denominations view the baptism of Jesus as an important event, in Eastern Christianity, Jesus baptism is commemorated on 6 January, the feast of Epiphany. In Roman Catholicism, the baptism of Jesus is one of the Luminous Mysteries sometimes added to the Rosary and it is a Trinitarian feast in the Eastern Orthodox Churches. Mark, Matthew, and Luke depict the baptism in parallel passages, after the baptism, the Synoptic gospels describe the temptation of Jesus, where Jesus withdrew to the Judean desert to fast for forty days and nights. Matthew In Matthew 3,14, upon meeting Jesus, John said, I have need to be baptized of thee, however, Jesus convinces John to baptize him nonetheless. Matthew uniquely records that the voice from heaven addresses the crowd, rather than addressing Jesus himself as in Mark, Luke Luke uniquely depicts John as a family relative of Jesus, with Johns birth also announced by angel. Luke uniquely depicts John as showing kindness to tax collectors. Luke records that Jesus was praying when Heaven was opened and the Holy Spirit descended on him, Luke clarifies that the spirit descended in the bodily form of a dove, as opposed to merely descending like a dove. In Acts 10, 37–38, the ministry of Jesus is described as following the baptism which John preached, in John 1, 29–33 rather than a direct narrative, John the Baptist bears witness to the spirit descending like a dove. John 1, 35–37 narrates an encounter, between Jesus and two of his disciples, who were then disciples of John the Baptist. The episode in John 1, 35–37 forms the start of the relationship between Jesus and his future disciples, when John the Baptist called Jesus the Lamb of God, the two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus. One of the disciples is named Andrew, but the other remains unnamed, and Raymond E. Brown raises the question of his being the author of the Gospel of John himself. In the Gospel of John, the disciples follow Jesus thereafter, and bring other disciples to him, and Acts 18, 24–19,6 portrays the disciples of John as eventually merging with the followers of Jesus. According to the non-canonical Gospel of the Nazarenes, the idea of being baptized by John came from the mother and brothers of Jesus, plus, the story came from the community that included the family of Jesus, who would have guaranteed the authenticity of the narrative. The Gospel of John refers to Enon near Salim as one place where John the Baptist baptized people, separately, John 1,28 states that John the Baptist was baptizing in Bethany beyond the Jordan

14.
Ministry of Jesus
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The Gospel of Luke states that Jesus was about 30 years of age at the start of his ministry. A chronology of Jesus typically has the date of the start of his ministry estimated at around AD 27–29, Jesus Early Galilean ministry begins when after his Baptism, he goes back to Galilee from his time in the Judean desert. The Major Galilean ministry which begins in Matthew 8 includes the commissioning of the Twelve Apostles, the Final Galilean ministry begins after the death of John the Baptist as Jesus prepares to go to Jerusalem. In the Later Judean ministry Jesus starts his journey to Jerusalem through Judea. As Jesus travels towards Jerusalem, in the Later Perean ministry, about one third the way down from the Sea of Galilee along the River Jordan, the Final ministry in Jerusalem is sometimes called the Passion Week and begins with Jesus triumphal entry into Jerusalem. The gospels provide more details about the final ministry than the other periods, the gospel accounts place the beginning of Jesus ministry in the countryside of Roman Judea, near the River Jordan. Jesuss Baptism is generally considered the beginning of his ministry and the Last Supper with his disciples in Jerusalem as the end, however, some authors also consider the period between the Resurrection and the Ascension part of the ministry of Jesus. Luke 3,23 states that Jesus was about 30 years of age at the start of his ministry, there have been different approaches to estimating the date of the start of the ministry of Jesus. In the New Testament, the date of the Last Supper is very close to the date of the crucifixion of Jesus, scholarly estimates for the date of the crucifixion generally fall in the range AD 30-36. The three Synoptic Gospels refer to just one passover during his ministry, while the Gospel of John refers to three passovers, suggesting a period of three years. However, the Synoptic gospels do not require a ministry that lasted one year. The gospels present John the Baptists ministry as the precursor to that of Jesus, John 1,28 specifies the location where John was baptizing as Bethany beyond the Jordan. This is not the village Bethany just east of Jerusalem, but the town Bethany, first-century historian Flavius Josephus also wrote in the Antiquities of the Jews that John the Baptist was imprisoned and then killed in Machaerus on the border of Perea. Assuming that there were two incidences of Cleansing of the Temple, which was located in Jerusalem, a reference to an early Judean ministry may be John 2. The Early Galilean ministry begins when Jesus goes back to Galilee from the Judean desert, after rebuffing the temptation of Satan. In this early period, Jesus preaches around Galilee and, in Matthew 4, 18-20, his first disciples encounter him, begin to travel with him and eventually form the core of the early Church. The Gospel of John includes Marriage at Cana as the first miracle of Jesus taking place in early period of ministry. A few villages in Galilee have been suggested as the location of Cana, the return of Jesus to Galilee follows the arrest of John the Baptist

15.
Miracles of Jesus
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The miracles of Jesus are the supernatural deeds attributed to Jesus in Christian and Islamic texts. The majority are faith healing, exorcisms, resurrection of the dead, in the Synoptic Gospels, Jesus refuses to give a miraculous sign to prove his authority. To many Christians and Muslims, the miracles are actual historical events, others, including liberal Christians, consider these stories to be figurative. Since the Enlightenment scholars have taken a highly skeptical approach to claims about miracles, in most cases, Christian authors associate each miracle with specific teachings that reflect the message of Jesus. The three types of healings are cures where an ailment is cured, exorcisms where demons are cast away, karl Barth said that, among these miracles, the Transfiguration of Jesus is unique in that the miracle happens to Jesus himself. In Matthew 10,8 he advised his disciples to heal the sick without payment and stated, freely ye received and it is not always clear when two reported miracles refer to the same event. For example, in the Healing the Centurions servant, the Gospels of Matthew, the Gospel of John has a similar but slighty different account at Capernaum, and states that it was the son of a royal official who was cured at a distance. The largest group of miracles mentioned in the New Testament involve cures, the Gospels give varying amounts of detail for each episode, sometimes Jesus cures simply by saying a few words, at other times employs material such as spit and mud. Generally they are referred to in the Synoptic Gospels but not in the Gospel of John, the canonical Gospels tell a number of stories of Jesus healing blind people. The earliest is a story of the healing of a man in Bethsaida in the Gospel of Mark. The Mark Gospel also has an account of the healing of a man named Bartimaeus, the Gospel of Luke tells the same story of Jesus healing an unnamed blind man, but moves the event in the narrative to when Jesus approaches Jericho. The Gospel of John describes an episode in which Jesus heals a man blind from birth, placed during the Festival of Tabernacles, Jesus mixes spittle with dirt to make a mud mixture, which he then places on the mans eyes. He asks the man to wash his eyes in the Pool of Siloam, when the man does this, he is able to see. When asked by his disciples whether the cause of the blindness was the sins of the father or his mother. ( A story in which Jesus cures a leper appears in Mark 1, 40-45, Matthew 8, 1-4 and Luke 5, Healing the paralytic at Capernaum appears in Matthew 9, 1-8, Mark 2, 1-12 and Luke 5, 17-26. The Synoptics state that a paralytic was brought to Jesus on a mat, Jesus told him to get up and walk, Jesus also told the man that his sins were forgiven, which irritated the Pharisees. Jesus is described as responding to the anger by asking whether it is easier to say that someones sins are forgiven, or to tell the man to get up and walk. Mark and Luke state that Jesus was in a house at the time, a similar cure is described in the Gospel of John as the Healing the paralytic at Bethesda and occurs at the Pool of Bethesda

16.
Parables of Jesus
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The Parables of Jesus can be found in all the canonical gospels, except for John, and in some of the non-canonical gospels, but are located mainly within the three synoptic gospels. They represent a key part of the teachings of Jesus, forming one third of his recorded teachings. Christians place high emphasis on these parables, since they are the words of Jesus, they are believed to be what the Father has taught. Jesus parables are seemingly simple and memorable stories, often with imagery, scholars have commented that although these parables seem simple, the messages they convey are deep, and central to the teachings of Jesus. Christian authors view them not as mere similitudes which serve the purpose of illustration, as a translation of the Hebrew word מָשָׁל mashal, the word parable can also refer to a riddle. In all times in their history the Jews were familiar with teaching by means of parables, the use of parables by Jesus was hence a natural teaching method that fit into the tradition of his time. The parables of Jesus have been quoted, taught, and discussed since the beginnings of Christianity. Parables are one of the literary forms in the Bible. Parables are generally considered to be short stories such as the Good Samaritan, a true parable may be regarded as an extended simile. Although some suggest parables are essentially extended allegories, others argue the opposite. Dr. Kenneth Boa states that Parables are extended figures of comparison that often use short stories to teach a truth or answer a question, while the story in a parable is not historical, it is true to life, not a fairy tale. The three synoptic gospels contain the parables of Jesus, There are a growing number of scholars who also find parables in the Gospel of John, such as the little stories of the Good Shepherd or the childbearing woman. Otherwise, John includes allegories but no parables, several authors such as Barbara Reid, Arland Hultgren or Donald Griggs comment that parables are noticeably absent from the Gospel of John. The Catholic Encyclopedia states, There are no parables in St. Johns Gospel and we reckon thirty-three in all, but some have raised the number even to sixty, by including proverbial expressions. They list no parables for the Gospel of John, Parables attributed to Jesus are also found in other documents apart from the Bible. Some of these overlap those in the gospels and some are not part of the Bible. The non-canonical Gospel of Thomas contains up to fifteen parables, eleven of which have parallels in the four canonical Gospels, the unknown author of the Gospel of Thomas did not have a special word for parable, making it difficult to know what he considered a parable. Those unique to Thomas include the Parable of the Assassin and the Parable of the Empty Jar, the noncanonical Apocryphon of James also contains three unique parables attributed to Jesus

17.
Humiliation of Christ
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The Humiliation of Christ is a Protestant Christian doctrine that consists of the rejection and suffering that Jesus received and accepted, according to Christian belief. Within it are included his incarnation, suffering, death, burial, the distinction between the states of humiliation and exaltation does present difficulties in explaining the idea that Christ won a victory on the cross. The cross is not stairway that leads down, but the first step of a stairway whose head reaches into the heavens, the belief of this comes from several places in the Bible. One passage says Christians interpret this as referring to the coming of Jesus. The Epistle to the Philippians in the Christian New Testament reads, the Christian belief is that God could do anything, so the question is asked, Why was Christ made so lowly by being born in a stable and laid upon a manger. Herod sent out soldiers to kill him, Jesus was saved from death as a mere baby by a miracle. The Christian belief is that this was God, Christ was rejected by his own towns synagogue. He read from Isaiah and the people rejected him, Jesus stated that no prophet was accepted in his own town. The people were filled with wrath and tried to kill him, Christ was put to shame for doing miracles such as casting demons out of men. Jesus was rejected by his own people in favour of Barabbas and he was then spat upon, beaten and mocked by the Roman soldiers. The ultimate form of humiliation, Christ was crucified while being mocked, in Early Christianity, the prevalent view of Jesus was based on the Kyrios image as the Lord and Master, e. g. in his Transfiguration. In the 13th century a major turning point was the development of the image of Jesus as the Franciscans began to emphasize his humility from birth in a humble setting to his death on the cross. The Nativity scene promoted by Saint Francis of Assisi portrayed an image of Jesus

18.
Crucifixion of Jesus
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The crucifixion of Jesus occurred in 1st century Judea, most probably between the years 30 and 33 AD. According to the gospels, Jesus, the Christ, was arrested, tried, and sentenced by Pontius Pilate to be scourged. Jesus was stripped of his clothing and offered wine mixed with gall to drink and he was then hung between two convicted thieves and according to Marks Gospel, died some six hours later. During this time, the soldiers affixed a sign to the top of the cross stating Jesus of Nazareth and they then divided his garments among them, but cast lots for his seamless robe. After Jesus death they pierced his side with a spear to be certain that he had died, the Bible describes seven statements that Jesus made while he was on the cross, as well as several supernatural events that occurred. Collectively referred to as the Passion, Jesus suffering and redemptive death by crucifixion are the aspects of Christian theology concerning the doctrines of salvation. The baptism of Jesus and his crucifixion are considered to be two historically certain facts about Jesus, bart Ehrman states that the crucifixion of Jesus on the orders of Pontius Pilate is the most certain element about him. John Dominic Crossan states that the crucifixion of Jesus is as certain as any historical fact can be, eddy and Boyd state that it is now firmly established that there is non-Christian confirmation of the crucifixion of Jesus. Craig Blomberg states that most scholars in the third quest for the historical Jesus consider the crucifixion indisputable. Christopher M. Tuckett states that, although the reasons for the death of Jesus are hard to determine, one of the indisputable facts about him is that he was crucified. While scholars agree on the historicity of the crucifixion, they differ on the reason, geza Vermes also views the crucifixion as a historical event but provides his own explanation and background for it. John P. Meier views the crucifixion of Jesus as historical fact and states that, based on the criterion of embarrassment, Christians would not have invented the painful death of their leader. Meier states that a number of criteria, e. g. the criterion of multiple attestation. The crucified man was identified as Yehohanan ben Hagkol and probably died about 70 AD, the analyses at the Hadassah Medical School estimated that he died in his late 20s. The earliest detailed accounts of the death of Jesus are contained in the four canonical gospels, there are other, more implicit references in the New Testament epistles. In the synoptic gospels, Jesus predicts his death in three separate episodes, all four Gospels conclude with an extended narrative of Jesus arrest, trial, crucifixion, burial, and accounts of resurrection. In each Gospel these five events in the life of Jesus are treated with more detail than any other portion of that Gospels narrative. Scholars note that the reader receives an almost hour-by-hour account of what is happening, after being flogged, Jesus was mocked by Roman soldiers as the King of the Jews, clothed in a purple robe, crowned with thorns, beaten and spat on

19.
Burial of Jesus
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The burial of Jesus refers to the burial of the body of Jesus after crucifixion, described in the New Testament. According to the gospel accounts, he was placed in a tomb by a man named Joseph of Arimathea. The earliest reference is in a letter of Paul, writing to the Corinthians around the year 54 CE, he refers to the account he had received of the death and resurrection of Jesus. All four state that, on the evening of the Crucifixion, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body, there are significant differences between the four accounts, recording the evolution of the tradition from the earliest gospel to the last. Modern scholarship tends to see the accounts as contradictory. He puts the body in a new shroud and lays it in a tomb carved into the rock, in this account, Joseph does only the bare minimum needed for observance of the law, wrapping the body in a cloth, with no mention of washing or anointing it. This may explain why Mark has a prior to the Crucifixion. The Gospel of Matthew was written around the year 85 or 90, in this account Joseph of Arimathea is not referenced as a member of the Sanhedrin, but a wealthy disciple of Jesus. Many interpreters have read this as an orientation by the author towards wealthy supporters. This version suggests a more honourable burial, Joseph wraps the body in a shroud and places it in his own tomb. The author adds that the Roman authorities made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and this detail may have been added to answer claims by contemporary opponents that the followers of Jesus had stolen his body. The Gospel of Mark is also a source for the account given in the Gospel of Luke, the last of the gospels, John, differs from Mark on this point, depicting Joseph as a disciple who gives Jesus an honourable burial. John says that Joseph was assisted in the process by Nicodemus. N. T. Wright notes that the burial of Christ is part of the earliest gospel traditions, robinson states that the burial of Jesus in the tomb is one of the earliest and best-attested facts about Jesus. Rudolf Bultmann described the story as a historical account which creates no impression of being a legend. John Dominic Crossan, however, suggests that Jesus body was eaten by dogs as it hung on the cross so that there was nothing left to bury. Martin Hengel argued that Jesus was buried in disgrace as a criminal who died a shameful death. This appears to be an early pre-Pauline credal statement, the burial of Christ is specifically mentioned in the Apostles Creed, where it says that Jesus was crucified, dead, and buried

20.
Resurrection of Jesus
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The resurrection of Jesus is the Christian religious belief that, after being put to death, Jesus rose again from the dead. It is the central tenet of Christian theology and part of the Nicene Creed, Paul the Apostle declared that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures. Paul further asserted And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile, then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If in Christ we have hope in life only, we are of all people most to be pitied. Christians celebrate the resurrection of Jesus on Easter Sunday, two days after Good Friday, the day of his crucifixion. Easters date corresponds roughly with Passover, the Jewish observance associated with the Exodus, in the New Testament all four gospels conclude with an extended narrative of Jesuss arrest, trial, crucifixion, burial, and his resurrection. In each gospel these five events in the life of Jesus are treated with more detail than any other portion of that gospels narrative. Scholars note that the reader receives an almost hour-by-hour account of what is happening, the death and resurrection of Jesus are treated as the climax of the story, the point to which everything else has been moving all the while. After his death by crucifixion, Jesus was placed in a new tomb which was discovered early Sunday morning to be empty, the New Testament does not include an account of the moment of resurrection. In the Eastern Church icons do not depict that moment, but show the myrrhbearers, the major resurrection appearances of Jesus in the canonical gospels are reported to have occurred after his death, burial and resurrection, but prior to his ascension. This was in accordance with Mosaic Law, which stated that a person hanged on a tree must not be allowed to remain there at night, but should be buried before sundown. All four gospels report that women were the ones to find the tomb of Jesus empty, according to Mark and Luke, the announcement of Jesus resurrection was first made to women. According to Mark and John, Jesus actually appeared first to Mary Magdalene alone, in the gospels, especially the synoptics, women play a central role as eyewitnesses at Jesus death, entombment, and in the discovery of the empty tomb. All three synoptics repeatedly make women the subject of verbs of seeing, clearly presenting them as eyewitnesses, after they found the empty tomb, the gospels indicate that Jesus made a series of appearances to the disciples. He was not immediately recognizable, according to Luke, E. P. Sanders concluded that although he could appear and disappear, he was not a ghost. Writing that Luke was very insistent about that, Sanders pointed out that the risen Lord could be touched and he first appeared to Mary Magdalene, but she did not recognize him at first. The first two disciples to whom he appeared, walked and talked with him for quite a while without knowing who he was and he was made known in the breaking of the bread. Beside the Sea of Galilee he encouraged Peter to serve his followers and his final appearance is reported as being forty days after the resurrection when he was carried up into heaven where he sits on the right hand of God

21.
Ascension of Jesus
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The Ascension of Jesus is the departure of Christ from Earth into the presence of God. Heavenly ascents were fairly common in the time of Jesus, signifying divine approval or the deification of an exceptional man. The Ascension of Jesus is an important theme in Christian art, the world of the Ascension is a three-part universe with the heavens above, a flat earth centered on Jerusalem in the middle, and the underworld below. Heaven was separated from the earth by the firmament, the visible sky, humans looking up from earth saw the floor of heaven, made of clear blue lapis-lazuli, as was Gods throne. There is a consensus among scholars that the brief Ascension account in the Gospel of Mark is a later addition to the original version of that gospel. Luke-Acts, a work from the same anonymous author, provides the only detailed account of the Ascension. And it came to pass, while he blessed them, he parted from them, and they worshiped him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy. and to Mary Magdalene after his Resurrection, Do not hold me, for I not yet ascended to my father. Various epistles also refer to an Ascension, seeming, like Luke-Acts and John, to equate it with the post-resurrection exultation of Jesus to the right hand of God. Although it signifies an equal participation in glory and majesty, it is taken to be a certain place about which the Lord, speaking in the Gospel, says. The apostle Peter also says, Heaven must receive Christ until the time of restoring all things, despite this, the Ascension itself has become an embarrassment. As expressed in a statement by theologian Rudolf Bultmann in his essay The New Testament and Mythology. No one who is old enough to think for himself supposes that God lives in a local heaven, and if this is so, the story of Christs. Ascension into heaven is done with, the Feast of the Ascension is one of the ecumenical feasts of the Christian liturgical year, along with the Passion, Easter, and Pentecost. The Ascension has been a frequent subject in Christian art, by the 6th century the iconography of the Ascension had been established and by the 9th century Ascension scenes were being depicted on domes of churches. The Rabbula Gospels include some of the earliest images of the Ascension, many ascension scenes have two parts, an upper part and a lower part. The ascending Christ may be carrying a banner or make a sign of benediction with his right hand. The blessing gesture by Christ with his hand is directed towards the earthly group below him. In the left hand, he may be holding a Gospel or a scroll, the Eastern Orthodox portrayal of the Ascension is a major metaphor for the mystical nature of the Church

22.
Active obedience of Christ
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In Protestant Christian theology, the active obedience of Jesus Christ comprises the totality of his actions, which Christians believe was in perfect obedience to the law of God. In Reformed theology, Christs active obedience is generally believed to be imputed to Christians as part of their justification, according to the Bible, in Hebrews 4,15, Jesus was without sin. Robert L. Reymond interprets Romans 5,18 as referring to Christs entire life work, the imputation of Christs active obedience is a doctrine within Reformed theology. It is based on the idea that Gods righteousness demands perfect obedience to his law, by his active obedience, Christ has made available a perfect righteousness before the law that is imputed or reckoned to those who put their trust in him. This imputation therefore constitutes the positive element of justification, as a result of this, our attainment of eternal life would have been dependent upon our perfect obedience to the law of God, and we would be certain to fall. The imputation of Christs active obedience has usually been denied by Arminians, james B. Jordan argues that the transformation. Achieved by Jesus was not something earned like a weekly allowance, what is transferred to the believer is not Jesus works and merits but his glorified and resurrected life in the Spirit. Christs keeping of the law proved that he was righteous, rather than making him righteous. As he lay dying, J. Gresham Machen, the American Presbyterian theologian, sent a telegram to his friend John Murray containing the words

23.
Session of Christ
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The Christian doctrine of the Session of Christ or heavenly session says that Jesus Christ is seated at the right hand of God the Father in Heaven—the word session is an archaic noun meaning sitting. The New Testament also depicts Jesus as standing and walking in Heaven, according to the Book of Acts, Acts 2,33, after Jesus resurrection and ascension, he was exalted to the right hand of God. Preaching on the Day of Pentecost, Peter saw Jesus exaltation as a fulfilment of Psalm 110,1, The LORD says to my Lord, in the Bible, the right hand is the special place of honour. The idea of Christs heavenly session appears a time in the account of Peters preaching in the Book of Acts. In Acts 5,31, Peter says that God exalted Jesus, to his own right hand, the heavenly session was important to other writers of the New Testament. In the Epistle to the Hebrews, Hebrews 10,12, it says that Jesus sat down at the hand of God. As in Acts 2, the language of Psalm 110 is used, other New Testament passages that speak of Christ as being at Gods right hand are Ephesians 1,20 and 1Peter 3,22. In Matthew Matthew 26,64 and Mark 14,62, Jesus says to Caiaphas and this is a reference to Daniel 7,13, in which Daniel sees a vision of one like a son of man coming to the Ancient of Days. The word session is a noun meaning sitting. Wayne Grudem notes that the word meant the act of sitting down. This language is used in Psalm 110,1 and Hebrews 10,12, in Acts 7,55, however, Stephen sees Jesus standing at the right hand of God. This may represent Jesus rising momentarily from the throne of glory to greet his proto-martyr, standing as a witness to vindicate Stephens testimony, or preparing to return. In the Book of Revelation, Revelation 2,1, on the other hand, robert Mounce suggests that since these lampstands represent seven churches, Jesus motion indicates that he is present in their midst and aware of their activities. The Apostles Creed says of Jesus that He ascended into heaven, the heavenly session is often connected to the enthronement of Christ as King. The Catechism of the Catholic Church says that being seated at the Fathers right hand signifies the inauguration of the Messiahs kingdom, in Hebrews 10,12, however, it is Jesus priestly office that is in view. The session refers to the nature of the work, in the same way that a human being will sit down at the completion of a large work to enjoy the satisfaction of having accomplished it

24.
Intercession of Christ
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Intercession of Christ is the Christian belief in the continued intercession of Jesus and his advocacy on behalf of humanity, even after he left the earth. In Christian teachings, the intercession of Christ before God relates to Jesus anamnesis before God during the Last Supper, from the Christological perspective, the intercession of Christ is distinguished from the Intercession of the Spirit. In the first case Christ takes petitions to the Father in Heaven, the theological basis for the belief in the intercession of Christ is provided in the New Testament. In the Epistle to the Romans Saint Paul states, It is Christ Jesus that died, yea rather, that was raised from the dead, who is at the hand of God. This intercession resonates with John 17,22 which refers to the communion between Christ and God the Father. In Pauline Christology the intercession of Christ has two components, both in the present and at the Last Judgement, in Christian teachings, the intercession of Christ before God relates to Jesus anamnesis before God during the Last Supper and the continuing memorial nature of the Eucharistic offering. These were purchased from among men, the firstfruits unto God, from the Christological perspective, the intercession of Christ is distinguished from the Intercession of the Spirit. Intercession of the Spirit Intercession of saints Session of Christ

25.
Second Coming
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The Second Coming is a Christian concept regarding the future return of Jesus to Earth after his first coming and ascension to heaven about two thousand years ago. The belief is based on messianic prophecies found in the gospels and is part of most Christian eschatologies. Views about the nature of Jesus Second Coming vary among Christian denominations, most English versions of the Nicene Creed include the following statements. he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead and we look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Several different terms are used to refer to the Second Coming of Christ, In the New Testament, the Greek New Testament uses the Greek term parousia twenty-four times, seventeen of them concerning Christ. The word is used six times referring to individuals and one time referring to the coming of the lawless one. The etymology of the Greek word parousia is related to para beside ousia presence, in English parousia always has a special, Christian meaning. The Bauer-Danker Lexicon provides the definition. of Christ, and nearly always of his Messianic Advent in glory to judge the world at the end of this age. The Catholic Encyclopedia article on the General judgment states, In the New Testament the second Parousia, the Saviour Himself not only foretells the event but graphically portrays its circumstances. The Apostles give a most prominent place to this doctrine in their preaching, besides the name Parusia, or Advent, the second coming is also called Epiphany, epiphaneia, or Appearance and Apocalypse, or Revelation. The time of the second coming is spoken of as that Day the day of the Lord, the day of Christ, the day of the Son of Man, and the last day. Children, it is the last hour, and just as you heard that Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have appeared, from this we know that it is the last hour. The position associating the Second Coming with 1st century events such as the destruction of Jerusalem, some Preterists see this coming of the Son of Man in glory primarily fulfilled in Jesus death on the cross. They believe the signs are already fulfilled including the sun will be dark. Will be shaken, and then they will see, moreover, Jesus was reported to have told his disciples, Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. Some, such as Jerome, interpret the phrase this generation to mean in the lifetime of the Jewish race, however, other scholars believe that if Jesus meant race he would have used genos not genea. Most English versions of the Nicene Creed in current use include the statements about Jesus. he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead and we look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come

26.
Relics associated with Jesus
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A number of relics associated with Jesus have been claimed and displayed throughout the history of Christianity. Some people believe in the authenticity of some relics, others doubt the authenticity of various items, similarly, while experts debate whether Christ was crucified with three or with four nails, at least thirty Holy Nails were venerated as relics across Europe in the early 20th century. As Christian teaching generally states that Christ was assumed into heaven corporeally, there are few bodily relics, a notable exception, from long before the ascension, is the Holy Foreskin. In the Christian tradition, the True Cross refers to the cross used in the Crucifixion of Jesus. Today, many fragments of wood are claimed as True Cross relics, tradition and legend attribute the discovery of the True Cross to Saint Helena, mother of Constantine the Great who went to Palestine during the fourth century in search of relics. Eusebius of Caesarea was the contemporary author to write about Helenas journey in his Life of Constantine. But Eusebius did not mention the finding of the True Cross, although he dwelt heavily on the piety of Helena, pieces of the purported True Cross, including the half of the INRI inscription tablet, are preserved at the ancient basilica Santa Croce in Gerusalemme in Rome. Very small pieces or particles of the True Cross are reportedly preserved in hundreds of churches in Europe. Their authenticity is not accepted universally by those of the Christian faith, the acceptance and belief of that part of the tradition that pertains to the Early Christian Church is generally restricted to the Catholic and Orthodox Churches. The Medieval legends of its provenance differ between Catholic and Orthodox tradition and these churches honour Helena as a saint, as does also the Anglican Communion. A number of acheiropoieta images reported to be of the face of Jesus, in most cases these images are subject to intense debate and speculation. The Shroud of Turin is the relic of Jesus and one of the most studied artifacts in human history. Various tests have been performed on the shroud, yet both believers and skeptics continue to present arguments for and against the validity of the tests, one of the contentious issues is the radiocarbon dating in 1988 which yielded results indicating that the shroud was made during the Middle Ages. Heated debate has ensued ever since, believers claim that pollen residues on the Shroud of Turin shows strong evidence that it originated in the Jerusalem area before the 8th century. Both skeptics and proponents tend to have very entrenched positions on the cause of formation of the shroud image and this may prevent the issue from being fully settled to the satisfaction of all sides in the near future. The Sudarium of Oviedo is a cloth, measuring c.84 ×53 cm, kept in the Cámara Santa of the Cathedral of San Salvador, Oviedo. The Sudarium is claimed to be the cloth wrapped around the head of Jesus Christ after he died, the Sudarium is severely soiled and crumpled, with dark flecks that are symmetrically arranged but form no image, unlike the markings on the Shroud of Turin. However, some of those who accept the Shroud as authentic claim that many of the stains on the Sudarium match those on the portion of the Shroud

27.
Jesus in Islam
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The Quran and most Hadith mention Jesus to have been born a pure boy to Mary as the result of virginal conception, similar to the event of the Annunciation in Christianity. Like all prophets in Islamic thought, Jesus is also called a Muslim, in Islam, Jesus is believed to have been the precursor to Muhammad, attributing the name Ahmad to someone who would follow Jesus. Muslim tradition believes Jesus will return to earth near the Day of Judgment to restore justice, the narrative has been recounted with variations and additions by Islamic historians over the centuries. Secluded in a church, she is joined by a man named Joseph. Mary is later described as a widow, without mention of a previous husband, the account of the birth of Jesus follows the Qurans narrative, adding that the birth occurred in Bethlehem beside a palm tree with a manger. The work The Meadows of Gold by Al-Masudi, an Arab historian and geographer, al-Athir writes about how Jesus as a young boy helped to detect a thief, and about bringing a boy back to life which Jesus was accused of having killed. Al-Athir makes a point believing Marys pregnancy to have lasted not nine or eight months and his basis is that this understanding is closer to where the Quran says Mary conceived him and retired with him to a distant place. The virgin birth of Jesus is announced to Mary by the angel Gabriel while Mary is being raised in the Temple after having been pledged to God by her mother. Gabriel states she is honored over all women of all nations and has brought her glad tidings of a holy son. A hadith narrated by Abu Hurairah, one of the earliest companions of Muhammad, quotes Muhammad, a baby who is touched like that gives a cry. The only exceptions are Mary and her son, the angel declares the son is to be named Jesus, the Messiah, proclaiming he will be called a great prophet, being the Spirit of God and Word of God, who will receive al-Injīl. The angel tells Mary that Jesus will speak in infancy and, Mary, responding how she could conceive and have a child when no man had touched her, was told by the angel that God can decree what He wills, and it shall come to pass. A spirit from none other than God, So that he raise the dead. Mary, overcome by the pains of childbirth, is provided a stream of water under her feet from which she could drink, as Mary carried baby Jesus back to the temple, she was asked by the temple elders about the child. Having been commanded by Gabriel to a vow of silence, she points to the infant Jesus and the infant proclaims. Peace be upon me, the day I was born, and the day I die, and the day I am raised up alive. Jesus speaking from the cradle is mentioned as one of six miracles in the Quran, the speaking infant narrative is also found in the Syriac Infancy Gospel, a pre-Islamic sixth century work. Many moral stories and miraculous events of Jesus youth are mentioned in Qisas al-anbiya, books composed over the centuries about pre-Islamic prophets and it is generally agreed that Jesus spoke Aramaic, the common language of Judea in the first century AD and the region at-large. Tradition believes Jesus mission was to the people of Israel, his status as a prophet confirmed by numerous miracles, from this basis reflected upon all previous prophets through the lens of Muslim identity, Jesus is no more than a messenger repeating the same message of the ages

28.
Mary in Islam
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In the Quran, her story is related in three Meccan chapters and four Medinan chapters, and the nineteenth chapter of the scripture, the Chapter of Mary, is named after her. The Quran refers to Mary more than the entire New Testament, the Quran calls Mary the daughter of Imran and it mentions that people called her a sister of Aaron. In the Qur’an, Hannah prayed for a child and eventually conceived, expecting the child to be male, Hannah vowed to dedicate him to isolation and service in the Temple. However, Hannah bore a daughter instead, and named her Mary, Mary is mentioned frequently in the Quran, and her narrative occurs consistently from the earliest chapters, revealed in Mecca, to the latest verses, revealed in Medina. The birth of Mary is narrated in the Qur’an with references to her father as well as her mother, Marys father is called Amran in tradition and is the equivalent of Joachim in Christian tradition. Her mother is called Anne, which is the name as in Christian tradition. Muslim literature narrates that Amram and his wife were old and childless and that, one day and she prayed to God to fulfill her desire and vowed, if her prayer was accepted, that her child would be dedicated to the service of God. No such doctrine exists in Islam, the Qur’an narrates that Mary grew up in the temple of the prayer, and had a special place in the temple of her own. She was placed under the care of the prophet Zechariah, her uncle, the Muslim narrative makes it clear that lots were cast as to who should be the guardian of Mary and the outcome was that she should be placed under Zechariahs care. As often as Zechariah entered Marys prayer chamber, he found her provided with food and he would ask her where she received it from, scholars have debated as to whether this refers to miraculous food that Mary received from God or whether it was normal food. The virgin birth of Jesus is supremely important in Islam, as one of the most important miracles of God. The first explicit mention of an annunciation foreshadowing the birth of Jesus is in sura 19, ayah 20 where Mary asks Gabriel how she will be able to conceive, when no man has touched her. Gabriels reply assures Mary that for God all things are easy, the birth is later referred in sura 66, ayah 12, where the Quran states that Mary remained pure, while God allowed a life to shape itself in Marys womb. A third mention of the annunciation is in sura 3, ayat 42–43, commentators on the Qur’an remark on the last verse that Mary was as close to a perfect woman as there could be, and she was devoid of almost all failings. Although Islam honors numerous women, including Khadijah and Fatimah, many commentators followed this verse in the absolute sense, and agreed that Mary was the greatest woman of all time. According to exegesis and literature, Gabriel appeared to Mary, who was young in age, in the form of a well-made man with a shining face. After her immediate astonishment, she was reassured by the answer that God has the power to do anything. The details of the conception are not discussed during these angelic visits, the Qur’an narrates the virgin birth of Jesus numerous times

29.
Mahdi
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In Islamic eschatology, the Mahdi is the prophesied redeemer of Islam who will rule for five, seven, nine, or nineteen years before the Day of Judgement and will rid the world of evil. There is no reference to the Mahdi in the Quran. According to Islamic tradition, the Mahdis tenure will coincide with the Second Coming of Jesus Christ, differences exist in the concept of the Mahdi between Shia Muslims and adherents of the Sunni tradition. For Sunnis, the Mahdi is the Muslims future leader who is yet to come, for most Shia Muslims, the Mahdi was born but disappeared and will remain hidden from humanity until he reappears to bring justice to the world, a doctrine known as the Occultation. For Twelver Shia, this hidden Imam is Muhammad al-Mahdi, the Twelfth Imam, throughout history, various individuals have claimed to be the Mahdi. The term mahdi does not occur in the Quran, but it is derived from the Arabic root h-d-y, the term al-Mahdi was employed from the beginning of Islam, but only as an honorific epithet and without any messianic significance. As an honorific it has used in some instances to describe Muhammad, as well as Abraham, al-Hussain. During the second war, after the death of Muʾawiya. In Kufa during the rebellion in 680s, Al-Mukhtar proclaimed Muhammad al-Hanafiyyah as the Mahdi in this heightened sense. Among the Umayyads, Sulayman encouraged the belief that he was the Mahdi, early discussions about the identity of al-Mahdi by religious scholars can be traced back to the time after the Second Fitna. These discussions developed in different directions and were influenced by traditions attributed to Muhammad, by the time of the Abbasid Revolution in the year 750, Mahdi was already a known concept. Evidence shows that the first Abbasid caliph As-Saffah assumed the title of the Mahdi for himself and they became known as Kaysanites, and introduced what later became two key aspects of the Shias concept of the Mahdi. The first was the notion of return of the dead, particularly of the Imams, the second was that after al-Hanafiyyahs death they believed he was, in fact, in hiding in the Razwa mountains near Medina. This later developed into the known as the Occultation. The Mahdi appeared in early Shi’ite narratives, spread widely among Shi’ite groups and became dissociated from its historical figure, during the 10th century, based on these earlier beliefs, the doctrine of Mahdism was extensively expanded by Al-Kulayni, Ibrahim al-Qummi and Ibn Babawayh. In particular, in the early 10th century, the doctrine of the Occultation, the Mahdi became synonymous with the Hidden Imam who was thought to be in occultation awaiting the time that God has ordered for his return. This return is envisaged as occurring shortly before the final Day of judgment, in fact, the concept of the hidden Imam was attributed to several Imams in turn. Some historians suggest that the term itself was introduced into Islam by southern Arabian tribes who had settled in Syria in the mid-7th century

30.
Islamic eschatology
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Islamic eschatology is the branch of Islamic scholarship that studies Yawm al-Qiyāmah or Yawm ad-Dīn. This is believed to be the final assessment of humanity by God, consisting of the annihilation of all life, resurrection, the time of the event is not specified, although there are major and minor signs which have been foretold to happen at al-Qiyamah. Many verses of the Quran contain the motif of the impending Last Judgment, surat al-Qiyama has as its main subject the resurrection. The Great Tribulation is also described in the hadith, and commentaries of the such as al-Ghazali, Ibn Kathir, Ibn Majah, Muhammad al-Bukhari. The Day of Judgment is also known as the Day of Reckoning, the hadith describe the end time with more specificity than the Quran, describing the events of al-Qiyamah through twelve major signs. At the time of judgment, terrible corruption and chaos will rule, the Mahdi will be sent and with the help of Jesus, will battle Masih ad-Dajjal. They will triumph, liberating Islam from cruelty, and this will be followed by a time of serenity with people living true to religious values, however, there is no mention of the advent of Mahdi and Isa in one era in any of the hadith. Some Muslim scholars translate the Arabic word Imam as Mahdi to prove the advent of Mahdi, like other Abrahamic religions, Islam also teaches resurrection of the dead, a final tribulation and eternal division of the righteous and wicked. Islamic apocalyptic literature describing Armageddon is often known as fitna, malāḥim, the righteous are rewarded with pleasures of Jannah Paradise, while the unrighteous are punished in Jahannam Hell. The Day of Judgment or Resurrection, al-Qiyāmah, is one of the six articles of faith in Islam. The tribulation associated with it is described in the Quran and hadith, and commentaries of ulama like al-Ghazali, Ibn Kathir, Ibn Majah, Muhammad al-Bukhari, the Day of Judgment is also known as the Day of Reckoning, the Hour, and the Last Day. The Day of Judgment or Resurrection, al-Qiyāmah, relates to one of the six articles in Sunni Islam and seven articles in Shia Islam. There are two sources in Islamic scripture that discuss the Last Judgment, the Quran, which is viewed in Islam as infallible. Hadith are viewed with more flexibility due to the compilation of the traditions in written form. The concept has also discussed in commentaries of ulama such as al-Ghazali, Ibn Kathir. The Quran describes the Last Judgment with a number of interpretations of its verses, there are specific aspects, The time is known only to God. Those who have been dead will believe that a time has passed between birth and death. God will resurrect all, even if they have turned to stone or iron and those that have accepted false deities will suffer in the afterlife

31.
Historical background of the New Testament
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In 64 BCE, the already partially Hellenized Judea was incorporated into the Roman Republic as a client kingdom when Pompey the Great conquered Jeruseleum. The Romans treated Judea as a crossroads to trading territories. Direct rule was imposed in 6 CE, and Roman prefects were appointed to maintain order through a political appointee, throughout the third quarter of the first century, the conflict between the Jews and the Romans gave rise to increasing tensions. Before the end of the quarter of the first century, these tensions culminated with the first Jewish-Roman War. This war effectively flattened Jerusalem, and the city was rebuilt as the Roman colony of Aelia Capitolina. Historians seek to understand where Jesus and his followers fit among other Jewish factions at the time, Josephus also speaks of a Fourth Movement, Zealots, Lestai or Sicarii. The Pharisees were a force in 1st-century Judea. Early Christians shared several beliefs of the Pharisees, such as resurrection, retribution in the world, angels, human freedom. After the fall of the Temple, the Pharisaic outlook was established in Rabbinic Judaism, some scholars speculate that Jesus was himself a Pharisee. In Jesus day, the two schools of thought among the Pharisees were the House of Hillel, which had been founded by the eminent Tanna, Hillel the Elder. Jesus assertion of hypocrisy may have been directed against the members of the House of Shammai. Jesus also commented on the House of Hillels teachings concerning the greatest commandment, Historians do not know whether there were Pharisees in Galilee during Jesus life, or what they would have been like. The Sadducees were particularly powerful in Jerusalem and they accepted the written Law only, rejecting the traditional interpretations accepted by the Pharisees, such as belief in retribution in an afterlife, resurrection of the body, angels, and spirits. After the fall of Jerusalem, they disappeared from history, the Essenes were apocalyptic ascetics, one of the three major Jewish schools of the time, although they were not mentioned in the New Testament. Some scholars theorize that Jesus was an Essene, or close to them, the notion that Jesus himself was a Zealot does not do justice to the earliest Synoptic material describing him. Alternatively, according to Dale Martin of Yale and supported by Bart Ehrman, as well as an essay by James Still, during this period serious theological differences emerged between the Sadducees and Pharisees. Whereas Sadducees favored a limited interpretation of the Torah, Pharisees debated new applications of the law, unlike the Sadducees, the Pharisees also believed in the concept of the Resurrection of the Dead in a future, Messianic Age or World to Come. These beliefs seem to have influenced Christians belief in a resurrected Jesus, during this time a variety of other religious movements and splinter groups developed

32.
Race and appearance of Jesus
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The race and appearance of Jesus has been a topic of discussion since the days of early Christianity. There are no accounts of his physical appearance. According to Biblical accounts, Jesus was a Galilean Hebrew Israelite, most scholars consequently believe he would have been of Ancient Middle Eastern appearance. Various theories about the race of Jesus have been advanced and debated, by the Middle Ages, a number of documents, generally of unknown or questionable origin, had been composed and were circulating with details of the appearance of Jesus. Now these documents are considered forgeries. By the 19th century, theories that Jesus was non-Semitic were being developed, many people have a mental image of Jesus drawn from artistic depictions. A wide range of depictions have appeared over the two millennia since Jesuss death, often influenced by cultural settings, political circumstances and theological contexts and these images are often based on second- or third-hand interpretations of spurious sources, and are generally not historically accurate. A January 23,2015 article from Popular Mechanics for reference shows a computer image simulation - http, the Synoptic Gospels include the account of the Transfiguration of Jesus, during which he was glorified with His face shining as the sun. But this appearance is considered to refer to Jesus in unearthly form. The Book of Revelation includes Johns vision of the Son of Man. and His feet were like unto burnt brass, His head and His hairs were white like wool, as white as snow, as if they burned in a furnace. In a vision, but this vision is usually considered to refer to Jesus in heavenly form, larger arguments of this kind have been debated for centuries. Justin Martyr argued for the genealogy of Jesus in the biological Davidic line from Mary, but this only implies a general Jewish ancestry, acknowledged generally by authors. The focus of early sources was on Christs physical unattractiveness rather than his beauty. Tertullian states that Christs outward form was despised, that he had an ignoble appearance, according to Irenaeus he was a weak and inglorious man and in The Acts of Peter he is described as small and ugly to the ignorant. Andrew of Crete relates that Christ was bent or even crooked and in The Acts of John he is described as bald-headed, theodore of Mopsuhestia likewise claimed that the appearance of Christ was smaller than that of the children of Jacob. In the apocryphal Lentulus letter Christ is described as having had a reddish complexion, Christs prediction that he would be taunted Physician, heal yourself may suggest that Christ was indeed physically deformed as claimed in the early Christian texts listed above. In fact, Justin Martyr, Tertullian, and Ambrose actually considered lack of attractiveness in Jesus as fulfilling the Messianic prophecy Suffering Servant narrative of Isaiah 53. For Augustine he was beautiful as a child, beautiful on earth, by the Middle Ages a number of documents, generally of unknown or questionable origin, had been composed and were circulating with details of the appearance of Jesus, as described below

33.
Genealogy of Jesus
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The New Testament provides two accounts of the genealogy of Jesus, one in the Gospel of Matthew and another in the Gospel of Luke. Matthews starts with Abraham, while Luke begins with Adam, the lists are identical between Abraham and David, but differ radically from that point. Some modern biblical scholars such as Marcus J. Borg and John Dominic Crossan see both genealogies as inventions, to bring the Messianic claims into conformity with Jewish criteria. Thus there were fourteen generations in all from Abraham to David, fourteen from David to the exile to Babylon, Matthew emphasizes, right from the beginning, Jesus title Christ—the Greek rendering of the Hebrew title Messiah—meaning anointed, in the sense of an anointed king. Jesus is presented as the long-awaited Messiah, who was expected to be a descendant of King David. Matthews introductory title has been interpreted in ways, but most likely is simply a title for the genealogy that follows. Matthews genealogy is considerably more complex than Lukes, the second spans the Davidic royal line, but omits several generations, ending with Jeconiah and his brothers at the time of the exile to Babylon. The last, which appears to only thirteen generations, connects Joseph to Zerubbabel through a series of otherwise unknown names. The total of 42 generations is achieved only by omitting several names, various explanations have been suggested, fourteen is twice seven, symbolizing perfection and covenant, and is also the gematria of the name David. The rendering into Greek of Hebrew names in this genealogy is mostly in accord with the Septuagint, the form Asaph seems to identify King Asa with the psalmist Asaph. Likewise, some see the form Amos for King Amon as suggesting the prophet Amos, both may simply be assimilations to more familiar names. More interesting, though, are the unique forms Boes and Rachab, three consecutive kings of Judah are omitted, Ahaziah, Jehoash, and Amaziah. These three kings are seen as especially wicked, from the line of Ahab through his daughter Athaliah to the third. The author probably felt justified in omitting them in creating a set of fourteen. Another omitted king is Jehoiakim, the father of Jeconiah, also known as Jehoiachin, in Greek the names are even more similar, both being sometimes called Joachim. While some see this as a mistake, others argue that the omission was once again deliberate, the final group seems to contain only thirteen generations. If Josiahs son was intended as Jehoiakim, then Jeconiah could be counted separately after the exile, another possibility is that Mary is counted as a generation, proceeding laterally by her marriage to Joseph. Though such a reckoning is otherwise unknown, it may have seemed necessary in light of the claim of a virgin birth, some have even proposed that Matthews original text had one Joseph as the father of Mary, who then married another man of the same name

34.
Historicity of Jesus
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The historicity of Jesus concerns the degree to which sources show Jesus of Nazareth existed as a historical figure. It concerns not just the issue of what happened, based upon the context of the time and place. A second issue is tied to historical research practices and methodologies for analyzing the reliability of primary sources. It also considers the question of whether he was a Nazirite, historicity, by contrast as a subject of study different from history proper, is concerned with two different fundamental issues. The main accounts of the life and teachings of Jesus are third party narratives written years after his death, many scholars have questioned the authenticity and reliability of these sources, and few events that are mentioned in the gospels are universally accepted. Non-Christian sources which are used to study and establish the historicity of Jesus include Jewish sources such as Josephus, similarities and differences between these sources are used in the authentication process. Josephus Antiquities of the Jews, written around 93–94 AD, includes two references to the biblical Jesus in Books 18 and 20. There are three references to the name Jesus in Book 20, Chapter 9, Jesus, who was called Christ, Jesus, son of Damneus, a Jewish High Priest, the Roman historian Tacitus, in his Annals, book 15, chapter 44. Referred both to Christus and his execution by Pontius Pilate, the very negative tone of Tacitus comments on Christians make the passage extremely unlikely to have been forged by a Christian scribe. The Tacitus reference is now accepted as an independent confirmation of Christs crucifixion. The historical reliability of the gospels refers to the reliability and historic character of the four New Testament gospels as historical documents, some scholars state that the authorship of the gospels is pseudepigraphic and unknown, and little in the four canonical gospels is considered to be historically reliable. Most scholars of antiquity agree that Jesus existed, but scholars differ on the historicity of specific episodes described in the accounts of Jesus. The Synoptic Gospels are the sources of historical information about Jesus. These religious gospels–the Gospel of Matthew, the Gospel of Mark, the fourth gospel, the Gospel of John, differs greatly from the Synoptic Gospels. Historians subject the gospels to critical analysis by differentiating authentic, reliable information from possible inventions, exaggerations, since there are more textual variants in the New Testament than it has letters, scholars use textual criticism to determine which gospel variants could theoretically be taken as original. According to New Testament scholar James Dunn, nearly all modern scholars consider the baptism of Jesus, John P. Meier views the crucifixion of Jesus as historical fact and states that based on the criterion of embarrassment Christians would not have invented the painful death of their leader. There is much in dispute as to his previous life, childhood, family and place of residence, scholars attribute varying levels of certainty to other episodes. Some assume that there are eight elements about Jesus and his followers that can be viewed as historical facts, namely and he had a controversy at the Temple

35.
Chronology of Jesus
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A chronology of Jesus aims to establish a timeline for the historical events of the life of Jesus. Scholars have correlated Jewish and Greco-Roman documents and astronomical calendars with the New Testament accounts to estimate dates for the events in Jesus life. Most scholars, on basis, assume a date of birth between 6 and 4 BC with Saturday April 17,6 BC /17.4.748 AUC /29 Nisan 3755 HC being the most likely candidate. Hence, scholars estimate that Jesus began preaching, and gathering followers, according to the three synoptic gospels Jesus continued preaching for at least one year, and according to John the Evangelist for three years. Four main approaches have been used to estimate the date of the crucifixion of Jesus, one uses non-Christian sources such as Josephus and Tacitus. Another works backwards from the well established trial of Apostle Paul in Achaea to estimate the date of Pauls conversion. Both approaches result in AD36 as a bound to the crucifixion. Thus, scholars agree that Jesus was crucified between AD30 and AD36. Astronomical point estimates developed by Newton focus on Friday 3 April AD33 or Friday 7 April AD30, the Christian gospels do not claim to provide an exhaustive list of the events in the life of Jesus. Although they provide few details regarding events which can be clearly dated, a number of historical non-Christian documents, such as Jewish and Greco-Roman sources, have been used in historical analyses of the chronology of Jesus. Virtually all modern historians agree that Jesus existed, and regard his baptism and his crucifixion as historical events, using these methods, most scholars assume a date of birth between 6 and 4 BC, that Jesus preaching began around AD 27-29 and lasted one to three years. They calculate the death of Jesus as having taken place between AD30 and 36. The date of birth of Jesus of Nazareth is not stated in the gospels or in any secular text, but most scholars assume a date of birth between 6 BC and 4 BC.4.748 AUC /14 Nisan 3790 HC, respectively. The reign of Tiberius Caesar began on the death of his predecessor Augustus Caesar in September AD14, riesners alternative suggestion is that John the Baptist began his ministry in AD26 or 27, because Tiberius ruled together with Augustus for two years before becoming the sole ruler. If so, the year of Tiberius reign would be counted from AD12. In addition, coin evidence shows that Tiberius started to reign in AD14, the New Testament presents John the Baptist as the precursor to Jesus and the Baptism of Jesus as marking the beginning of Jesus ministry. Herods Temple in Jerusalem was an extensive and long term construction on the Temple Mount, having built entire cities such as Caesarea Maritima, Herod saw the construction of the Temple as a key, colossal monument. The dedication of the temple followed a 17 or 18 month construction period

36.
Historical Jesus
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It also considers the historical and cultural context in which Jesus lived. Historical Jesus scholars typically contend that he was a Galilean Jew living in a time of messianic and apocalyptic expectations. Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist, whose example he may have followed and he preached salvation, cleansing from sins, and the Kingdom of God, using parables with startling imagery, and was said to be a teacher and believed in faith healing. Some scholars credit the apocalyptic declarations of the Gospels to him, while others portray his Kingdom of God as a moral one and he sent his apostles out to heal and to preach the Kingdom of God. Later, he traveled to Jerusalem in Judea, where he caused a disturbance at the Temple and it was the time of Passover, when political and religious tensions were high in Jerusalem. The Gospels say that the temple guards arrested him and turned him over to Pontius Pilate for execution, the movement he had started survived his death and was carried on by his brother James the Just and the apostles who proclaimed the resurrection of Jesus. Since the 18th century, three separate quests for the historical Jesus have taken place, each with distinct characteristics and developing new. The portraits of Jesus that have been constructed in these processes have often differed from each other, there are, however, overlapping attributes among the various portraits, and scholars who differ on some attributes may agree on others. Most contemporary scholars of antiquity agree that Jesus existed, and most biblical scholars, there is no indication that writers in antiquity who opposed Christianity questioned the existence of Jesus. However, there is disagreement among scholars on the details of the life of Jesus mentioned in the gospel narratives. There is no physical or archaeological evidence for Jesus, all sources are documentary, mainly Christian writings, such as the gospels and the purported letters of the apostles. The authenticity and reliability of sources has been questioned by many scholars. In conjunction with biblical sources, three mentions of Jesus in non-Christian sources have used in the historical analyses of the existence of Jesus. These are two passages in the writings of the Jewish historian Josephus, and one from the Roman historian Tacitus, Josephus Antiquities of the Jews, written around 93–94 AD, includes two references to the biblical Jesus Christ in Books 18 and 20. Roman historian Tacitus referred to Christus and his execution by Pontius Pilate in his Annals, book 15, other considerations outside Christendom are the possible mentions of Jesus in the Talmud. The Talmud speaks in detail of the conduct of criminal cases of Israel. On the eve of the Passover Yeshua was hanged, for forty days before the execution took place, a herald went forth and cried, He is going forth to be stoned because he has practised sorcery and enticed Israel to apostacy. The first date of the Sanhedrin judiciary council being recorded as functioning is 57 B. C. E, almost all modern scholars consider his baptism and crucifixion to be historical facts

37.
Historical reliability of the Gospels
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The historical reliability of the Gospels refers to the reliability and historic character of the four New Testament gospels as historical documents. Some believe that all four canonical gospels meet the five criteria for historical reliability, elements whose historical authenticity is disputed include the two accounts of the Nativity of Jesus, the miraculous events including the resurrection, and certain details about the crucifixion. The fourth gospel, the Gospel of John, differs greatly from the first three gospels, Historians often study the historical reliability of the Acts of the Apostles when studying the reliability of the gospels, as Acts was seemingly written by the same author as the Gospel of Luke. Historians subject the gospels to critical analysis, attempting to differentiate, rather than authenticate, reliable information from possible inventions, exaggerations, and alterations. Since there are more variants in the New Testament than it has letters, scholars use textual criticism to determine which gospel variants could theoretically be taken as original. In evaluating the reliability of the Gospels, scholars consider a number of factors. These include authorship and date of composition, intention and genre, gospel sources and oral tradition, textual criticism, the genre of the gospels is essential in understanding the intentions of the authors regarding the historical value of the texts. New Testament scholar Graham Stanton states that the gospels are now considered to be a sub-set of the broad ancient literary genre of biographies. Charles H. E. P. Sanders states that “these Gospels were written with the intention of glorifying Jesus and are not strictly biographical in nature. ”Ingrid Maisch and Anton Vögtle writing for Karl Rahner in his encyclopedia of theological terms indicate that the gospels were primarily as theological. Erasmo Leiva-Merikakis notes that we must conclude, then, that the genre of the Gospel is not that of pure history, in fact, gospel constitutes a genre all its own, a surprising novelty in the literature of the ancient world. Some critics have maintained that Christianity is not founded on a figure, but rather on a mythical creation. ”Dunn believes that the earliest tradents within the Christian churches preservers more than innovators. seeking to transmit, retell, explain, interpret, elaborate. Nevertheless, David Jenkins, a former Anglican Bishop of Durham and university professor, has stated that “Certainly not. There is absolutely no certainty in the New Testament about anything of importance. ”Critical scholars have developed a number of criteria to evaluate the probability, or historical authenticity and these criteria are applied to the gospels in order to help scholars in reconstructions of the Historical Jesus. It is, therefore, more if it agrees with those known facts. For example, this is used when assessing the reliability of claims in Luke-Acts. Through linguistic criteria a number of conclusions can be drawn, the criterion of Aramaisms as it is often referred holds that if a saying of Jesus has Aramaic roots, reflecting Jesus Palestinian context, the saying is more likely to be authentic. The earliest manuscript is a card sized fragment from the Gospel of John, Rylands Library Papyrus P52. The first complete copies of single New Testament books appear around 200, and the earliest complete copy of the New Testament, the earlier existing copy of Platos dialogues dates about 1,000 years after Plato wrote the text

38.
Sources for the historicity of Jesus
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The only two events subject to almost universal assent are that Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist and was crucified by the order of the Roman Prefect Pontius Pilate. Non-Christian sources that are used to study and establish the historicity of Jesus include Jewish sources such as Josephus and these sources are compared to Christian sources such as the Pauline Epistles and the Synoptic Gospels. These sources are usually independent of other, and similarities and differences between them are used in the authentication process. The writings of the 1st century Romano-Jewish historian Flavius Josephus include references to Jesus, Josephus Antiquities of the Jews, written around 93–94 CE, includes two references to Jesus in Books 18 and 20. Of the two passages, the James passage in Book 20 is used by scholars to support the existence of Jesus, Josephus James passage attests to the existence of Jesus as a historical person and that some of his contemporaries considered him the Messiah. According to Bart Ehrman, Josephus passage about Jesus was altered by a Christian scribe, a textual argument against the authenticity of the James passage is that the use of the term Christos there seems unusual for Josephus. A further argument against the authenticity of the James passage is that it would have read well even without a reference to Jesus, the passage deals with the death of James the brother of Jesus in Jerusalem. Whereas the works of Josephus refer to at least twenty different people with the name Jesus, louis Feldman states that this passage, above others, indicates that Josephus did say something about Jesus. Scholars have differing opinions on the total or partial authenticity of the reference in the passage to the execution of Jesus by Pontius Pilate. Although the exact nature and extent of the Christian redaction remains unclear, a number of variations exist between the statements by Josephus regarding the deaths of James and the New Testament accounts. Robert Eisenman provides numerous early Christian sources that confirm the Josephus testament, the Roman historian and senator Tacitus referred to Christ, his execution by Pontius Pilate and the existence of early Christians in Rome in his final work, Annals, book 15, chapter 44. The relevant passage reads, called Christians by the populace, Christus, from whom the name had its origin, suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilatus. William L. Portier has stated that the consistency in the references by Tacitus, Josephus, Tacitus was a patriotic Roman senator and his writings shows no sympathy towards Christians. Agree with the Christian accounts on at least that basic fact, Bart D. Ehrman states, Tacituss report confirms what we know from other sources, that Jesus was executed by order of the Roman governor of Judea, Pontius Pilate, sometime during Tiberiuss reign. Eddy and Boyd state that it is now established that Tacitus provides a non-Christian confirmation of the crucifixion of Jesus. Although the majority of scholars consider it to be genuine, a few question the authenticity of the passage given that Tacitus was born 25 years after Jesus death. Some scholars have debated the value of the passage given that Tacitus does not reveal the source of his information. Theissen and Merz state that Tacitus gives us a description of widespread prejudices about Christianity and a few details about Christus and Christianity

39.
Quest for the historical Jesus
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The quest for the historical Jesus refers to academic efforts to provide a historical portrait of Jesus. These quests are distinguished from earlier approaches because they rely on the method to study biblical narratives. While textual analysis of biblical sources had taken place for centuries, the enthusiasm shown during the first quest diminished after Albert Schweitzers critique of 1906 in which he pointed out various shortcomings in the approaches used at the time. The second quest began in 1953 and introduced a number of new techniques, in the 1980s a number of scholars gradually began to introduce new research ideas, initiating a third quest characterized by the latest research approaches. These biographies attempted to apply some historical techniques to a version of the gospel accounts. By late 19th century, hundreds of Lives of Jesus were written, some of these were purely sensational, They were not produced because any new data had appeared, but because some people read and interpreted the gospels in new ways. These stories of the Lives of Jesus were often romanticized, highly psychological or included new elements which did not appear in any of the gospels or other historical documents, Mark Powell states that the production of these Lives of Jesus were typically driven by three elements,1. The imposition of a scheme which dictated the theme of the work. The exclusion of parts of the gospel accounts that did not fit in the scheme,3. The addition of new material which did not appear in any of the gospels to fill in the gaps in the story, andreas J. Köstenberger states that in many cases these stories portrayed Jesus like the questers themselves rather than a first-century Jewish figure. The underlying theme used by the authors of the various Lives of Jesus during the first quest varied, in some cases it aimed to praise Christianity, in other cases to attack it. Reimarus wrote a treatise which rejected miracles and accused the Bible authors of fraud, later, Gotthold Lessing posthumously published Reimarus thesis. Baron dHolbach who had no interest in recovering a historical Jesus but to criticize religion wrote Ecce Homo -The History of Jesus of Nazareth and published it anonymously in Amsterdam in 1769. The book was translated into English by George Houston, and published in 1799 and then 1813, David Strauss, at the age of 27 years, pioneered the search for the Historical Jesus by rejecting all supernatural events as mythical elaborations. His 1835 work, Life of Jesus, was one of the first and most influential analyses of the life story of Jesus. He adds that there are two periods of academic research in the quest for the historical Jesus, namely, the period before David Strauss. Johannes Weiss and William Wrede brought the eschatological aspects of the ministry of Jesus to the attention of the academic world, both Weiss and Wrede were passionately anti-liberal and their presentations aimed to emphasize the unusual nature of the ministry and teachings of Jesus. Wrede wrote on the Messianic Secret theme in the Gospel of Mark, Albert Kalthoff, in the chapter Was There An Historical Jesus

40.
Jesus in comparative mythology
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For over a century, various authors have drawn a number of parallels between the Christian views of Jesus and other religious or mythical domains. These include Greco-Roman mysteries, ancient Egyptian myths and more general analogies involving cross-cultural patterns of dying and rising gods in the context of Christ myth theory, a number of parallels have been drawn between the Christian views of Jesus and other religious or mythical domains. However, Eddy and Boyd state that there is no evidence of an influence by the pagan myths such as dying and rising gods on the authors of the New Testament. Paula Fredriksen states that no serious scholarly work places Jesus outside the backdrop of 1st century Palestinian Judaism, at the end of the 20th century the overall scholarly consensus had emerged against the soundness of the reasoning used to suggest the category. Tryggve Mettinger states that there is a consensus that the category is inappropriate from a historical perspective. Scholars such as Kurt Rudolph have stated the reasoning used for the construction of the category has been defective, scholars such as Samuel Sandmel, professor of Bible and Hellenistic Literature at Hebrew Union College, view conclusions drawn from the simple observations of similarity as less than valid. Parallels have been drawn between Greek myths and the life of Jesus, an early example was Friedrich Hölderlin, who in his Brot und Wein suggested similarities between the Greek god Dionysus and Jesus. Modern scholars such as Martin Hengel, Barry Powell, and Peter Wick, among others, argue that Dionysian religion, additionally, some scholars of comparative mythology argue that both Dionysus and Jesus represent the dying-and-returning god mythological archetype. The worship of Mithras was widespread in much of the Roman Empire from the mid-2nd century CE, the Mithra cult in the Roman Empire was a syncretism of different religious motifs, centered on the god Mithras who emerges from a rock. Mithras was a deity, closely associated with the Roman Sol Invictus. For that bread and a cup of water are in these mysteries set before the initiate with certain speeches you either know or can learn. Tertullian then wrote that as a prelude to the Mithraic initiation ceremony and he described these rites as a diabolical counterfeit of the baptism and chrismation of Christians. Early in the 20th century, Gerald Massey argued that there are similarities between the Egyptian god Horus and Jesus. Following those ideas, in the 1940s Alvin Boyd Kuhn suggested that not only Christianity, but Judaism was based on Egyptian concepts, and more recently Tom Harpur has expressed similar views. Harpur acknowledges Massey and Kuhn as his predecessors and theologian Stanley E. Porter states that most of Harpurs work is directly based on quoting Massey. The Roman Chronography of 354 then included a reference to the celebration of a Nativity feast in December. Porter criticizes Kuhns work based on various errors such as confusing the dates of the composition of the Mishnah, Porter also criticizes Harpurs views for their lack of rigor and consistency. The Egyptians had specific harvesting rituals that related the rising and receding waters of the Nile river and the farming cycle to the death and resurrection of Osiris

41.
Christ myth theory
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The Christ myth theory is the proposition that Christianity started with the belief in a new deity, named Jesus, who was later historicized in the Gospels, which are essentially allegory and fiction. Alternatively in simpler terms — given by Bart Ehrman — the historical Jesus did not exist, or if he did, he had virtually nothing to do with the founding of Christianity. There is an absence of any detailed biographical information such as might be expected if Jesus had been a contemporary of Paul. Therefore he is writing about either a mythical entity, a celestial deity. Christianity arose in the Greco-Roman world of the first and second century CE, synthesizing Jewish, early Christianity shared common philosophical and religious ideas with other religions of the time, including the ideas of personified aspects of God, and of a dying-and-arising savior deity. No independent eyewitness accounts survive, in spite of the fact that many authors were writing at that time, early second-century Roman accounts contain very little evidence, and may depend on Christian sources. Some mythicists hold — in terms given by Robert M. Price — the Jesus agnosticism viewpoint, while others go further and hold the Jesus atheism viewpoint. Some scholars have made the case there are a number of plausible Jesuses that could have existed. Others have said that Jesus may have lived far earlier, in a dimly remembered remote past, a number of writers adduce various arguments to show that Christianity has syncretistic or mythical roots. As such, the historical Jesus should not be regarded as the founder of the religion, in modern scholarship, the Christ Myth Theory is a fringe theory, and is accepted by only a small number of academics. The origins of Christianity, and the historical Jesus and the historicity of Jesus, are a matter of longstanding debates in theological and historical research. Within a few years after the death of Jesus in ca.33 CE. A central question is how these developed, and what their original convictions were. A wide range of beliefs and ideas can be found in early Christianity, including docetism and Gnosticism, while orthodox Christian theology and dogmas view Jesus as the incarnation of God/Christ on earth, mainstream scholarship views Jesus as a real person who was subsequently deified. Mythicists have been criticised for not explaining the rise of early Christianity. Elements of the Christ myth, and its cultus, can be found in the Pauline epistles and this new deity was fleshed out in the Gospels, which added a narrative framework and Cynic-like teachings, and eventually came to be perceived as a historical biography. According to Wells et al. these sayings may come from a real person, and consequently with some scholars proposing a more moderate position. They further note that the Gospels are a composite of various strands of thought, and note the similarities of early Christianity, Christ myth theorists generally reject the usefulness of these letters

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Criticism of Jesus
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Jesus of Nazareth is the central figure of Christianity. Christians believe that he was divine, while Islam considers him to have only a prophet, messenger. Since the time in which he is said to have lived, Early critics of Jesus and Christianity included Celsus in the second century and Porphyry in the third. In the 19th century, Friedrich Nietzsche was highly critical of Jesus, more contemporary notable critics of Jesus include Sita Ram Goel, Christopher Hitchens, Bertrand Russell, and Dayananda Saraswati. The Pharisees and scribes criticized Jesus and his disciples for not observing the Mosaic Law and they criticized his disciples for not washing their hands before eating. Jesus is also criticized for eating with the publicans, the Pharisees also criticized Jesus disciples for gathering grain on the Sabbath. Judaism also holds that Jesus is not the Messiah, arguing that he had not fulfilled the Messianic prophecies in the Tanakh nor embodied the personal qualifications of the Messiah. According to Jewish tradition, there were no prophets after Malachi. Thus Judaism is critical of Jesus own claims and allusions about his Messiahship and his identification as the son of God, even Jesus the Nazarene who imagined that he would be Messiah and was killed by the court, was already prophesied by Daniel. So that it was said, And the members of the outlaws of your nation would be carried to make a vision stand, because, is there a greater stumbling-block than this one. So that all of the prophets spoke that the Messiah redeems Israel, and saves them, and gathers their banished ones, and strengthens their commandments. However, the thoughts of the Creator of the world — there is no force in a human to them because our ways are not Gods ways. So that it is said, Because then I will turn toward the nations a clear lip, to all of them in the name of God. Look how all the world already full of the things of the Messiah, and the things of the Torah. And these things spread among the far islands and among the many nations uncircumcised of heart, in his paper published in Evangelical Quarterly, Kevin Giles notes that Jesus often encountered slavery, but not one word of criticism did the Lord utter against slavery. Giles points to this fact as being used as an argument that Jesus approved of slavery and he has sent me to proclaim freedom for the slaves from war. Celsus, 2nd-century Greek philosopher and opponent of Early Christianity, mounts a wide criticism against Jesus as the founder of the Christian faith and he discounts or disparages Jesus ancestry, conception, birth, childhood, ministry, death, resurrection, and continuing influence. According to Celsus, Jesus ancestors came from a Jewish village and his mother was a poor country girl who earned her living by spinning cloth

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Unknown years of Jesus
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The unknown years of Jesus generally refers to the period between Jesuss childhood and the beginning of his ministry, a period not described in the New Testament. In the late period, there appeared Arthurian legends that the young Jesus had been in Britain. In the 19th and 20th centuries theories began to emerge that between the ages of 12 and 30 Jesus had visited Kashmir, or had studied with the Essenes in the Judea desert. Modern mainstream Christian scholarship has rejected these theories and holds that nothing is known about this time period in the life of Jesus. The use of the lost years in the hypothesis, suggests that Jesus survived his crucifixion. Following the accounts of Jesus young life, there is a gap of about 18 years in his story in the New Testament. Other than the statement that after he was 12 years old Jesus advanced in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and men. Christians have generally taken the statement in Mark 6,3 referring to Jesus as Is not this the carpenter, as an indication that before the age of 30 Jesus had been working as a carpenter. The tone of the leading to the question Is not this the carpenter. Suggests familiarity with Jesus in the area, reinforcing that he had been seen as a carpenter in the gospel account before the start of his ministry. Matthew 13,55 poses the question as Is not this the carpenters son, suggesting that the profession tektōn had been a family business and Jesus was engaged in it before starting his preaching and ministry in the gospel accounts. The New Testament Apocrypha and early Christian pseudepigrapha preserve various pious legends filling the gaps in Christs youth, charlesworth explains this as due to the canonical Gospels having left a narrative vacuum that many have attempted to fill. The story of Jesus visiting Britain as a boy is a medieval development based on legends connected with Joseph of Arimathea. During the late 12th century, Joseph of Arimathea became connected with the Arthurian cycle and this idea first appears in Robert de Borons Joseph dArimathie, in which Joseph receives the Grail from an apparition of Jesus and sends it with his followers to Britain. This theme is elaborated upon in Borons sequels and in subsequent Arthurian works penned by others, some Arthurian legends hold that Jesus travelled to Britain as a boy, lived at Priddy in the Mendips, and built the first wattle cabin at Glastonbury. William Blakes early 19th century poem And did those feet in ancient time was inspired by the story of Jesus travelling to Britain, in some versions, Joseph was supposedly a tin merchant and took Jesus under his care when his mother Mary was widowed. Gordon Strachan wrote Jesus the Master Builder, Druid Mysteries and the Dawn of Christianity, Strachan believed Jesus may have travelled to Britain to study with the Druids. The idea of Indian influences on Jesus has been suggested in Louis Jacolliots book La Bible dans lInde, Vie de Iezeus Christna and he concluded that the account in the gospels is a myth based on the mythology of ancient India

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Scholastic Lutheran Christology
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Scholastic Lutheran Christology is the orthodox Lutheran theology of Jesus Christ, developed using the methodology of Lutheran scholasticism. These new features relate to the communion of the two natures, and to the states and the offices of Christ, the communicatio idiomatum means the communication of attributes or properties of one nature to the other, or to the whole person. It is derived from the unio personalis and the communio naturarum, the genus apotelesmaticum, whereby the redemptory functions and actions which belong to the whole person are predicated only of one or the other nature. The genus auchematicum, or maiestaticum, whereby the human nature is clothed with, a fourth kind would be the genus kenoticum, or tapeinoticum, Phil. 7,8, i. e. a communication of the properties of the nature to the divine nature. The third genus can never be carried out, unless the humanity of Christ is also eternalized. The attributes, moreover, are not an outside appendix, but inherent qualities of the substance to which they belong, hence a communication of attributes would imply a communication or mixture of natures. The divine and human natures can indeed hold free and intimate intercourse with each other, Christ possessed all the attributes of both natures, but the natures, nevertheless, remain separate and distinct. This is the state of humiliation and the state of exaltation and this doctrine is based upon Phil. But here, again, the two confessions differ very considerably, first as to the descent into Hades. It is properly the turning-point from the one state to the other, secondly, the Lutheran Confessions of the Book of Concord refer the two states only to the human nature of Christ, regarding the divine as not susceptible of any humiliation or exaltation. With them the incarnation itself is the beginning of the state of humiliation, finally, the Scholastic Lutherans regard the humiliation only as a partial concealment of the actual use of the divine attributes by the incarnate Logos. The prophetical office includes teaching and the miracles of Christ, the priestly office consists of the satisfaction made for the sins of the world by the death on the cross, and in the continued intercession of the exalted Savior for his people. The kingly office, whereby Christ founded his kingdom, defends his Church against all enemies, the threefold office or function of Christ was first presented by Eusebius of Caesarea. The theologians who followed Luther and Melanchthon down to the middle of the seventeenth century treat Christs saving work under the two heads of king and priest. Calvin, in the first edition of his Institutes, did the same, and it was not till the third edition and this convenient threefold division of the office of Christ was used by the theologians of both confessions during the seventeenth century. Ernesti opposed it, but Schleiermacher restored it, extra calvinisticum This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain, Jackson, Samuel Macauley, ed. article name needed. New Schaff–Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge, london and New York, Funk and Wagnalls

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Judaism's view of Jesus
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Among followers of Judaism, Jesus is viewed as having been the most influential, and consequently the most damaging, of all false messiahs. Judaism has never accepted any of the claimed fulfillments of prophecy that Christianity attributes to Jesus, Judaism also forbids the worship of a person as a form of idolatry, since the central belief of Judaism is the absolute unity and singularity of God. This view is espoused by some. The belief that Jesus is God, the Son of God, Jews believe Jesus did not fulfill messianic prophecies that establish the criteria for the coming of the messiah. Authoritative texts of Judaism reject Jesus as God, Divine Being, belief in the Trinity is also held to be incompatible with Judaism, as are a number of other tenets of Christianity. In Judaism, the idea of God as a duality or trinity is heretical — it is considered by some polytheistic. According to Judaic beliefs, the Torah rules out a trinitarian God in Deuteronomy, Hear Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is one. In his book A History of the Jews, Paul Johnson describes the schism between Jews and Christians caused by a divergence from this principle, To the question, Was Jesus God or man, after 70 AD, their answer was unanimous and increasingly emphatic. This made a breach with Judaism inevitable. Judaism teaches that it is heretical for any man to claim to be God, part of God, the Jerusalem Talmud states explicitly, if a man claims to be God, he is a liar. In the 12th century, the preeminent Jewish scholar Maimonides codified core principles of Judaism, writing, the Cause of all, is one. This does not mean one as in one of a pair, nor one like a species, nor one as in an object that is made up of many elements, rather, God is a unity unlike any other possible unity. Some Jewish scholars note that the common poetic Jewish expression, Our Father in Heaven, was used literally by Jesus to refer to God as his Father in Heaven, judaisms idea of the messiah differs substantially from the Christian idea of the Messiah. In Judaism, the task is to bring in the Messianic Age, a one-time event. Maimonides states, But if he did not succeed in all this or was killed, he is not the Moshiach promised in the Torah. Jews believe that the messiah will fulfill the prophecies of the prophets Isaiah. According to Isaiah, the messiah will be a descendant of King David. Ezekiel states the messiah will redeem the Jews, therefore, any Judaic view of Jesus per se is influenced by the fact that Jesus lived while the Second Temple was standing, and not while the Jews were exiled

According to the Quran, the pains of labor took Mary to the trunk of a palm tree. The voice of Gabriel or Jesus consoled her and told her that God miraculously provides water to drink and dates to eat.

The Life of Christ as a narrative cycle in Christian art comprises a number of different subjects narrating the events …

16th-century Italian cycle in fresco with 21 scenes from Annunciation to Resurrection: Top row: Annunciation, Nativity, Visit of the Three Magi, Flight to Egypt, Baptism of Christ, Raising of Lazarus, Entry to Jerusalem, Last Supper. Middle row: Washing of feet, Agony in the Garden, Arrest of Christ, Trial before the Sanhedrin, Trial before Pilate, Flagellation. Bottom row: Ecce homo, Carrying the cross, Christ falls, Crucifixion, Deposition from the cross, Harrowing of Hell, Resurrection.